So you've decided to make payroll simple by signing up for OnPay. As a perk, we'll be entering the personal information of your workers (employees and contractors) and their pay histories (if any), once you've completed the 7-Step Setup.
If you haven't yet signed up and created your OnPay account and password, do this first. Once we've verified your email, you can begin the 7-step self-enrollment process.
What we’ll cover
- Getting started
- Step 1: Company Basics
- Step 2: Owner or Officer Information
- Step 3: Reporting Agent Authorization
- Step 4: Company Bank Account
- Step 5: Pay Schedules
- Step 6: Worksites
- Step 7: Verify Bank Account
- Before you run payroll
What you’ll need:
- Company legal name
- Company phone number
- Federal Employer Identification Number (FEIN)
- Owner/Officer information
Note: If you've never set up or run payroll before, we know it can be daunting. Get caught up with this quick guide to setting up payroll for the first time.
Getting started
After setting a password and clicking Sign Up, you’ll see your pending enrollment. Click Launch next to your company name.
Note: Once you begin, if you’re unable to complete your enrollment at any point of the process, that’s okay. Your information is automatically saved, and you can always resume where you left off by logging back in with your email and the password you created.
7 step setup
The rest of your enrollment will be setting up your account. We’ll do it in 7 steps, as seen below. On the left, you’ll see listed each step of the setup process. You can use this menu to return to previous steps to make changes when needed. If you ever need to step away, or you get interrupted before you’ve finished, that’s fine. Your progress is saved and you can return to this dashboard at any time by logging back in.
Save time with the Account Setup Information Sheet
You can download the Account Setup Information Sheet, a fillable PDF that covers every detail you'll need on-hand while setting up OnPay.
If you need guidance along the way, or just want to learn more about OnPay, visit our Help Center. You can also start a chat here, or just call us at (877) 328-6505, or email us at hello@onpay.com.
Step 1: Company Basics
Company Name and Address
Enter the full legal name of your business as it appears in your tax returns.
Note: If your company also does business under a different name, you can add any DBA (Does Business As) names here. This DBA name will appear on worker paychecks.
Federal Tax Information
Enter your Federal Employer Identification Number (FEIN). If you don’t have one, you can set one up with the IRS in just a few minutes. When you’re ready, you can return to OnPay and finish getting setup.
Company Classification
Find your registered Entity Type in the provided list. Then, tell us your industry. If you don’t see your exact industry, or you do business in a number of industries, just pick the best overall fit for describing your business. If you don't see your entity type in the list, select "LLC". This information is used to customize your experience.
943 For Agricultural Employees?
This form is required if you paid wages to one or more farmworkers and the wages were subject to social security and Medicare taxes or federal income tax withholding. Select “yes” to have OnPay file this form for you.
Company Contact Information
Help us get a hold of you if we have questions about your payroll by giving us the number where you can be reached.
Payroll
If you’ve paid employees this year, even if they no longer work for you, we’ll need reports for their Prior Wages. This is so that we can correctly deduct unemployment tax, and file on your behalf at the end of the year. Sound like a lot? We understand. That’s why we're happy enter your employees AND their prior wages for you. It’s the fastest way to get set up!
Payroll Frequency
While bi-weekly and semi-monthly may be the most popular pay frequencies, OnPay lets you pay your workers on the schedule (or schedules) your business requires, whether that's weekly, bi-weekly, semi-monthly, or monthly. If you're not sure which pay frequency you'll be using, that's okay. Just pick the most likely. You can always change this decision later.
Note: If you need multiple schedules, or your schedule is "Not Listed", we'll reach out by email to get more detailed information from you.
What's the difference between these pay schedules?
Weekly
A weekly payroll schedule is for companies that pay on the same day each week. This pay schedule will result in 52 paydays each year. For example, here's a typical schedule where the check date is Friday of each week.
Pay period: Sunday to Saturday (it will always be 7 days)
Pay date: The following Friday (known as a one week hold). We always recommend a 5-day hold for employers with hourly employees as it allows time to collect, process, and run payroll without being rushed.
Bi-weekly
A bi-weekly payroll schedule is for companies that pay on the same day every other week. This pay schedule will result in 26 paydays a year. For example, here's a typical schedule where the check date is Friday of every other week.
Pay period: 1st Sunday to 1st Saturday plus the 2nd Sunday to 2nd Saturday (it will always be 14 days)
Pay date: The Friday after the 1st Saturday of the pay period
Semi-monthly
A semi-monthly pay schedule is for companies that want to pay on the same two days every month. This pay schedule will result in 24 paydays per year. The most common semi-monthly pay schedule results in paydays on either the 1st and 15th of a month or paydays on the 5th or 20th of a month. OnPay simply needs an example of the next two pay periods to produce the schedule.
Here's a typical example of paydays on the 5th and 20th:
First pay period: The 1st through the 15th (it will always be 15 days)
First pay date: The 20th
Second pay period: The 16th through the end of the month (it will vary in length by month)
Second pay date: The 5th of the following month
Note: As you can see the pay schedules vary based on the number of days in the month and can often cause a check date to fall on a weekend. If your check date falls on a weekend please keep in mind the employee will be paid on the next business day. For example, if the pay date is on a Sunday, the employee will see the funds on Monday. This can make a semi-monthly pay schedule more difficult for employers to process, especially with hourly associates.
Monthly
A monthly pay schedule allows a company to pay on the same day every month. This pay schedule will result in 12 paydays per year. For example, here's a typical schedule where the check date is fifth of the following month.
First pay period: The 1st through the end of the month (it will vary in length by month)
Second pay date: The 5th of the following month
Many companies that have mainly salary employees making larger amounts, or companies where the owner is the only employee, choose to use a monthly schedule. It is simply not practical for most regular employees to be paid only once a month.
What's the best pay schedule for your business? What do most companies do? What about in your industry? Here's a breakdown of common pay periods, with pros and cons for each to help you pick the perfect pay period to meet the needs of your business, and your employees.
Payroll Amount
Next, tell us roughly how much in total you'll be paying your employees each pay period. You can always change this later.
Number of Workers
About how many employees and contractors do you pay in a typical pay run? It doesn't have to be exact, just give us an estimate. You can always change this later.
Don't see over 100? Rest assured, can handle big companies, too.
First Check Date
Set a goal for when you want your employees to receive their first check using OnPay. You can either type a date in the field, or use the calendar, and you can always go back and change it. To allow time for our team to get you set up, we recommend choosing a date that is at least one week away.
On the left, you can keep track of your progress as you finish each step. Click Continue to move to the next step. You can come back to this step without losing your progress.
Step 2: Owner or Officer Information
Enter the personal information of at least one owner or officer of the company. This is the individual who has the authority to sign legal documents on behalf of the company.
You must include
- Name
- Title
- Email address
- Personal phone number
- Social Security Number
- Birthday
- Home mailing address
If you are the Owner/Officer, get a head start by clicking “Use My Info”.
Click Save to finish adding the Owner/Officer information.
Once you’ve entered the Owner/Officer information, you can move on to the next step. If there are other Owner/Officers in your company, you’ll need to enter them, too. This can be done at any time during the setup process by returning to this step and clicking +Add Another.
Step 3: Reporting Agent Authorization
We handle all your tax filings so that you can trust that it’s always correct and on-time. But we’re only able to do this if you authorize us by signing Form 8655. In this form, you’ll find that your information is already populated based on the information you’ve provided. To sign electronically, select your title below the document preview, and click Sign.
Signing this form allows OnPay to:
- Sign and file certain returns
- Make deposits and payments for certain returns
- Receive duplicate copies of tax information, notices, and other written and/or electronic communication regarding any authority granted
- Provide IRS with information to aid in penalty relief determinations related to the authority granted on Form 8655
Need to skip this step?
We know that sometimes the person setting up OnPay isn't the same person who needs to sign Form 8655. If the owner or decision maker responsible for the business isn't available to sign when setting up OnPay, you can skip this step. If this is the case, we'll still need this signature, and so it's important that you email us at hello@onpay.com, and tell us you've skipped Form 8655. Our team will email you a copy of the form that can be signed digitally and returned to us.
Click Continue to progress to the next step.
Step 4: Company Bank Account
Your company bank account will be used for all payroll transactions, including the initial credit and debit transactions used to verify the account is open and active.
Enter the account number and routing number for the bank account you would like to use to pay your employees and contractors.
Once you’ve entered and double-checked these numbers, click Save & Continue. Once saved, your banking information is secured from all users, and can only be changed by contacting us at hello@onpay.com.
By selecting SAVE & CONTINUE you agree to the Terms of Service for OnPay.
When you see your banking information has been provisioned, click Continue.
Step 5: Pay Schedules
You'll set up a pay schedule for employee pay frequency and when they should be paid. You have the ability to set up more than one pay schedule in this section.
Schedule name and pay frequency
The simplest and most common approach to naming your schedule is to use the pay frequency as the name. The pay frequency determines how often your employees will be paid. A weekly schedule could be named simply "Weekly".
Conversely, if you pay different teams in your company with different frequencies, the name could be team based, such as "Management", or "Floor Techs".
Whatever you decide, keep it simple, and to make sure that you, and anyone running payroll for your company can easily pick the right schedule.
Check Date & Period Start/End Date
While your options will vary depending on your chosen pay frequency, but you will always need to choose the first check date (the date you want employees to receive their first paycheck through OnPay), as well as Period Start and Period End Dates (the span of time worked that the first paycheck is for). Remember that the last day of the period should be the day before the start of the next, not on the same day.
Note: Future pay periods and check dates will be scheduled based on this information, and the pay frequency.
Pay schedule preview
Based on this information, we’ll show you upcoming payroll cycles, including pay run deadlines, so you can get an idea of how this schedule works before you finish creating it.
Pay period options explained
Weekly/bi-weekly
For both weekly and bi-weekly pay frequency, choose the check date (first pay date), and the start and end dates for the period that check represents.
Weekly/Bi-weekly pay period examples
Weekly: 7 concurrent days - one week hold - 52 paydays per year
Bi-weekly: 14 concurrent days - one week hold - 26 paydays per year
Semi-monthly/monthly
For a semi-monthly pay frequency, choose the check date (first pay date), and the start and end dates for the period that check represents. Then, you'll set the start and end dates for the second period of each month.
Because every month is a little different, for this second period, you can choose a specific calendar day up to the 28th day of the month, or choose up to 5 days before the end of the month. It will apply to the current and all future months.
Semi-monthly/Monthly pay period examples
Semi-monthly: 2 pay periods per month (one 15-day period, and one period of varying length) - 24 pay periods per year
Note: If your check date falls on a weekend please keep in mind the employee will be paid on the next business day.
Monthly: 1 pay period per month - 12 pay periods per year
Learn more about creating a pay schedule.
Click Create when you’ve confirmed the details of your pay schedule.
You should now see your upcoming pay schedule. You can also add another schedule. You may have as many as your company needs.
Step 6: Worksites
Enter the location where your employees will perform their work. If you have multiple worksites, enter the main location here, then you will be able to add others.
Once you click Create, you will be able to add other worksites if needed. Enter all locations where your employees perform work. If you have employees working in another state, or a city where taxation is different than your main location, it’s important to indicate these worksites here. Different states/localities have unique tax implications, so this info helps ensure we get the payroll taxes right for every employee.
Step 7: Verify Bank Account
You can securely verify your bank account in OnPay using Plaid. You also can verify the bank account manually at a later time, if needed.
Click Continue, then follow the prompts. For detailed instructions in this process, including how to manually verify your bank account, check out this article!
This completes the 7-Step Setup... We'll take it from here
Before you run payroll
So you're ready to run payroll, but where will all that pay be going? Once we've entered your workers and their prior pay information in OnPay, you'll need to add their banking information so we can deposit their paychecks by Direct Deposit. You can choose whether to add this bank information for them, or to invite them to enter it themselves. Meanwhile, we'll be making sure your tax filings and withholdings are correct using the information you've provided, including prior wages for this year.
Learn more about direct deposit→
Entering workers
This is where it gets really easy, because we'll enter your workers for you. You can still enter them yourself, or invite them to setup their accounts on their own. As you hire more workers in the future, you'll have the choice to add them yourself, or invite them to self-enroll. We'll show you how!
For help during setup:
When hiring new employees:
Prior wages
If you answered “yes” to prior wages in Step 1, then we’ll need to get the payroll history of all employees paid this year, even if they no longer work for you. Our team will email you to get this process started, but you can learn how it works in this article.
Congratulations, you’re enrolled!
While we're entering your employees information and their prior wages, you should start familiarizing yourself with your OnPay dashboard.
There will also be a few communications coming from us that you'll want to watch out for.
Take action when prompted to:
- Verify bank account debits and credits Here's how→
- Respond to email request for worker information
- Include prior payroll histories in the worker information email (if applicable)
To learn more about using OnPay, visit our Help Center, or email us at hello@onpay.com.
Want to talk to an expert? Call us at (877)328-6505, or start a chat by clicking on the question mark at the top of your dashboard.
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