Payroll Help

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How to Set Up Pay Schedules

In this article:

Background
You can customize your payroll software by creating as many unique pay schedules for your company as needed with the following pay schedule choices:

  • Weekly
  • Biweekly
  • Semi-Monthly 
  • Monthly
  • Quarterly
  • Semi-Annually
  • Annually

After pay schedule setup, you can run “off-schedule,” or one-off payrolls, if you need to run a payroll outside of the payroll schedule you’ve created or if you don’t run on a regular schedule. See “Running an Off Schedule Payroll” for more information.

💡 Important! Many states enforce minimum pay schedule frequency requirements for employers, often these are contingent on factors like company size and industry. For guidance on these requirements, please refer to the United States Department of Labor website.

First-time Setup: Customize Your Pay Schedule

Patriot groups your employees based on the pay frequency you choose for them. However, you’ll need to add specific dates and the software will automatically generate your schedule.  If you are using the optional time and attendance software, you will need to complete the pay schedule setup to generate time cards for your employees in their portal.

Get started customizing your pay schedule:

1. Go to Settings > Payroll > Pay Schedules. Click on the pay schedule name from the list to customize, edit, or add the pay period date(s) and pay date.

Pay schedule fields:

  • Pay Schedule Name: The software assigns a default name based on the pay frequency, but you can edit it if necessary. If you’re creating multiple weekly pay schedules (e.g., based on location or department), ensure each has a unique name.
  • Pay Frequency: Automatically set based on employee assignments.
  • Pay Date: Choose the next payment date for these employees. The pay date can be changed if needed when running payroll. If you pay your employees through direct deposit keep in mind the required bank ACH processing time.
  • Pay Period Start date (weekly/biweekly) – Select the first day of the pay period 
    • The software will display the Pay Schedule Preview once both the “Pay Date” and the “Pay Period Start” dates are filled in. Adjust either date as needed and view the new preview.
  • Pay period End date – (Semimonthly custom dates/ Monthly/) – Select the last date of your pay period. The software will automatically calculate the first date of the pay period.
  • Active – This box is automatically checked for you. You will need to assign all employees to a different schedule before you can inactivate a pay schedule.
  • Save Pay Schedule – This button saves your dates and allows the software to prefill your schedule and pay date on payroll step one. 
  • Workweek Start Day – Select the day of the week your workweek starts (i.e. Monday,)
    • This field ONLY SHOWS if you have the optional time and attendance software add-on and the pay schedule is either monthly or semi-monthly.

Adjust your dates as needed to meet your desired schedule and to view revised pay schedules in the preview.

Banking Holidays and Pay Schedules

💡About Banking holidays: If a pay date falls on a banking holiday, we’ll move it up to the prior business banking day (Saturdays and Sundays do not count as banking days). However, you can adjust the pay date in the software when running payroll without it affecting the rest of the schedule.

How to Add a New Pay Schedule

In addition to having a pay schedule for each frequency, you can create more pay schedules if needed. For example, you can have a pay schedule for your biweekly Sales team and one for your bi-weekly Office team, or different work locations. You can also edit an existing pay schedule if needed.

Biweekly or Weekly Pay Frequencies

  1. Go to Settings > Payroll Settings > Pay Schedules
  2. Click +Add New.
  3. Add a Pay Schedule Name –  easily identify your new pay schedule, (ex: Biweekly, or Main Street – Weekly), up to 25 characters.
  4. Pay Frequency – select Biweekly or Weekly
    💡If your company pays employees on different pay frequencies, set up a new pay schedule for each
  5. Pay Period Start Date – Add a date from a typical pay period that doesn’t have a banking holiday included in it. This can be a pay date in the past or future.
  6. Pay Period Ends On Make sure this aligns with the pay date chosen in the preceding pay date field.
    • For weekly and biweekly payrolls this field will be autofilled based on the pay period start date.
  7. Pay Date: Choose the next payment date for these employees. The pay date can be changed if needed when running payroll. If you pay your employees through direct deposit keep in mind the required bank ACH processing time.
  8. View your Pay Schedule Preview. When you save the pay date and the pay period ends, a preview is generated. You can go back and edit dates if needed.  Each updated date will generate a new pay schedule preview.
  9. Click the “Save Pay Schedule” button to save your new pay schedule.

Semi Monthly Pay Frequencies

  1. Go to Settings > Payroll Settings > Pay Schedules
  2. Click +Add New.
  3. Add a Pay Schedule Name –  easily identify your new pay schedule, up to 25 characters.
  4. Pay Frequency – Select Semi-Monthly
    💡If your company pays employees on different pay frequencies, set up a new pay schedule for each
  5. What semi-monthly Schedule do you use?
    • Traditional:
      • First Pay Period: 1st of the month – 15th of the month
      • Second Pay Period: 16th of the month – last day of the month
    • Custom:
      • Choose the First Pay Period End Date
      • Choose the Second Pay Period End Date
  6. Pay Date – Select the number of days pay period ends
  7. Workweek Start Day – Select the day of the week your workweek starts (i.e. Monday,)
    • This field ONLY SHOWS if you have the optional time and attendance software add-on and the pay schedule is either monthly or semi-monthly.
  8. View your Pay Schedule Preview. When you save the pay date and the pay period ends, a preview is generated. You can go back and edit dates if needed.  Each updated date will generate a new pay schedule preview.
  9. Click the “Save Pay Schedule” button to save your new pay schedule.

Monthly Pay Frequencies

  1. Go to Settings > Payroll Settings > Pay Schedules
  2. Click +Add New
  3. Pay Schedule Name –  easily identify your new pay schedule, up to 25 characters.
  4. Pay Frequency – Select Monthly from the drop down
    💡If your company pays employees on different pay frequencies, set up a new pay schedule for each
  5. Pay Period End Date – Select the LAST day of the pay period in your monthly schedule
  6. Pay Date – Select from the drop down when the pay date occurs from the last pay period date (Example: 5 days after the pay period ends.)

Quarterly Pay Frequencies

  1. Go to Settings > Payroll Settings > Pay Schedules
  2. Click +Add New
  3. Pay Schedule Name –  easily identify your new pay schedule, up to 25 characters.
  4. Pay Frequency – Select Quarterly from the drop down.
  5. What quarterly schedule do you use? Select
    • Traditional: March 31 – June 30 – September 30 – December 31
    • Custom
      • Pay Period End Date – enter the date your next quarterly pay period ends
  6. Enter when the Pay Date occurs: ex 5 days after pay period ends.

Semi-Annual Pay Frequencies

  1. Go to Settings > Payroll Settings > Pay Schedules
  2. Click +Add New
  3. Pay Schedule Name –  easily identify your new pay schedule, up to 25 characters.
  4. Pay Frequency – Select Semi-Annually from the drop down.
  5. What quarterly schedule do you use? Select
    • Traditional: June 30 – December 31
    • Custom
      • Pay Period End Date – enter the date your next quarterly pay period ends.
  6. Enter when the Pay Date occurs: ex 5 days after pay period ends.

Annual Pay Frequencies

  1. Go to Settings > Payroll Settings > Pay Schedules
  2. Click +Add New
  3. Pay Schedule Name –  easily identify your new pay schedule, up to 25 characters.
  4. Pay Frequency – Select Annual from the drop down.
  5. What quarterly schedule do you use? Select
    • Traditional: December 31
    • Custom
      • Pay Period End Date – enter the date your next quarterly pay period ends.
  6. Enter when the Pay Date occurs: ex 5 days after pay period ends.

You may also find these articles helpful:
How to Assign Employees to a New Pay Schedule
How to Edit a Pay Schedule
How to Delete or Inactivate a Pay Schedule

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