It involves calculating wages or salaries, withholding taxes, and making deductions for benefits, retirement contributions, and other items. Payroll also includes disbursing payments (check, direct deposit, etc.), keeping accurate records, and ensuring compliance with tax laws and employment regulations. Key components of payroll include:
1. Gross pay: This refers to the gross sum before any type of deduction. These are hourly wages, salaries, bonuses, and commissions.
2. Deductions: These refer to taxes such as federal, state, and local. Social Security, Medicare, retirement contributions, and other employee benefits.
3. Net pay: The amount taken home by the employee after deducting all the aforementioned types of deductions.
4. Tax filings: This is a report and submission by the employer to the government agencies on behalf of the employees for payroll taxes.
5. Compliance: That the payroll process is compliant with labor laws, tax regulations, and other laws and regulations in place.
How to Turn on Auto Payroll in QuickBooks Online
Steps to set up Auto Payroll in QuickBooks Online:
1. Open the Payroll Menu From the QuickBooks Online dashboard, open the Payroll menu.
2. Open Payroll Settings Under Employees, click Payroll Settings.
3. Select Auto Payroll Setup Scroll down and select Auto Payroll Setup.
4. Add Employee Information Enter the details of the employees including the preferred payment and bank account details.
6. Review and Confirm Setup Carefully go through the details entered to ensure accuracy, and confirm the setup.
6. Enable Automatic Payroll Processing Allow automatic payroll processing to ensure timely and accurate payments to employees.
Once set up, QuickBooks Online will automatically process payroll according to the schedule specified, saving time and reducing errors.
Key Features of QuickBooks Payroll
1. Automated payroll processing
QuickBooks payroll makes payroll easy by automatically computing federal, state, and local tax. Businesses can run the payroll for their employees and their contractors and have options such as same-day direct deposit for faster payments.
2. Tax filing and compliance
The platform automatically completes federal and state payroll tax filings and payments. It will also generate and file the year-end forms, like W-2s and 1099s. Some plans include tax penalty protection for that added peace of mind.
3. Employee Benefits Management
QuickBooks Payroll integrates with health insurance plans, retirement accounts (401(k)), and workers' compensation insurance so businesses can offer comprehensive employee benefits.
4. Time Tracking Integration
With integration with QuickBooks Time, which is previously TSheets, accuracy in tracking employees' work hours, overtime, and PTOs will be even higher, thus accurate calculations when doing payroll.
5. Mode of Payment
QuickBooks payroll allows for a wide range of payments: direct deposit, through check, or pay card. Employees can safely view stubs and tax forms through an online portal.
6. Option of Plans
It has tiered plans, such as Core, Premium, and Elite, to cater to different business needs. The more advanced plans have features like HR support and tracking of projects.
7. HR Tools and Resources
QuickBooks Payroll offers onboarding, compliance, and employee management tools. Premium and Elite plans come with HR support and e-signature features for essential documents.
8. QuickBooks Accounting Integration
Payroll data automatically synchronizes with QuickBooks Online, which eases bookkeeping and helps ensure accuracy in financial reporting.
9. Mobile Access
It is easy to run payroll anywhere using the QuickBooks Payroll mobile application, and employees can check their pay and tax on this app.
10. Customer Support
QuickBooks Payroll supports customers 24/7 through chat or over the phone, depending on what plan is purchased. This service ensures that a customer always receives help in time, whenever needed.
