Employees & Payroll

Hi Debbie SA1,

I know getting used to a whole new system of accounting can take some getting used to, and it's great that you're looking for some guidance before jumping in. I'd be happy to direct you so that you know how to handle these payroll items and can get to work in QuickBooks Online.

I'll start with outlining how you can change to semi-monthly in QuickBooks Online. If you mean to say you'd like to change the employees' pay schedules to semi-monthly, that's easily handled through the employees' profiles. Here are the steps you can take for each employee.

1. Select Payroll from the left menu.
2. Click the name of the employee on the Employees tab.
3. Select Edit employee.
4. Click the drop-down menu for the question How often do you pay employee?
5. Select a different existing pay schedule or click Add new to create a new one. (Note: You'll only need to select Add new once if all other employees are going to be on the same pay frequency.)
6. If you clicked Add new, you'll be taken to the Add a pay schedule page, where you can select Twice a month to set up a semi-monthly schedule.
7. Enter the rest of the details.
8. Click Save to save the schedule.
9. Click Done to save the employee information.

Once you've got the schedule set up (which can also be completed via Payroll Settings in the Gear icon), you'll see it as an option on your employee pay frequency setup.

When it comes to the payroll taxes and remittances, knowing when to collect and pay those is key. To make sure you have the right information for your business, I recommend working with an accountant or payroll specialist who can shed more light on this for you. As a member of the QuickBooks Team, I can introduce you to features of the program and how to use them, but I'm not in a position to offer advice for managing your books.

You can even work with an accountant right in your QuickBooks Online account. The My Accountant tab gives you the opportunity to invite an accountant you're already working with as a user to your books, or you can use the Find a pro to help button on that page to research QuickBooks-savvy accountants near you.

For your reference, here are some articles about QuickBooks Online Payroll to help you with working in the program.

• Pay types overview

• Supported pay types and deductions explained

• Payroll set up: Payroll preferences

• Payroll taxes and forms

• Make payroll tax payments

You may find you also get responses from other users in the QuickBooks Community that offer you some advice, so feel free to keep an eye out for that. Wishing you the best with QuickBooks Online and your payroll setup!