Pay Runs
A Pay Run is a single payroll processing cycle for a specific Pay Group covering a defined date range. Each time you pay your employees, it is done through a Pay Run.
The Pay Run calculates each employee's net salary based on their salary structure, attendance, leaves, LOP, and deductions.
Navigate to: Payroll → Pay Runs
Pay Runs Section Overview
The Pay Runs section has two tabs:
| Tab | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Run Payroll | Manage and process current or draft pay runs |
| Payrolls History | View all previously finalized pay runs |
Run Payroll Screen
When you open the Run Payroll tab, the "Process Payrolls" panel appears. At the top:
- View Upcoming toggle — switch between upcoming scheduled pay runs and currently active (draft/in-progress) pay runs.
- Run for Previous Months button — trigger a pay run for a past pay period (for delayed processing or historical corrections).
- Pay Group filter — narrow the list to a specific Pay Group when viewing active pay runs.
Upcoming Pay Runs
When the View Upcoming toggle is ON, the screen shows scheduled pay runs that have not yet started. Each card displays:
- Pay Group name and the pay period date range
- Whether the run is Automatic or Manual
- Number of employees included
- Estimated payout date
For Automatic Pay Groups, the pay run is created automatically on the configured payout date with no action required from you. It will appear as a Draft once created.
For Manual Pay Groups, you trigger the pay run yourself when you are ready to process payroll.
If a pay run already exists for a given period, it will not appear in the Upcoming list and will not be created again.
Pay Run Statuses
Pay runs move through the following states:
Draft → In Review → Approved → Finalized
| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Draft | The pay run has been created and salary calculations are ready for review. You can make edits at this stage — adjust LOP days, enable or disable individual employees, or use Recalculate to pull in the latest salary and attendance changes. |
| In Review | The pay run has been submitted for review. You can no longer make changes at this stage unless it is sent back to Draft. |
| Approved | The pay run has been reviewed and approved. It is ready to be finalized. Do a final check at this stage before locking the payroll. |
| Finalized | The pay run is locked and complete. Payslips are generated for all included employees and can be downloaded or sent to employees directly. No further edits are possible. This state is permanent and cannot be reversed. |
If a Pay Group has Approval Required set to No, the In Review and Approved steps are skipped. You can move directly from Draft to Finalized. Check your Pay Group settings to confirm.
Action Buttons
| Button | Visible When | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Submit for Review | Draft | Moves the pay run to In Review. Triggers the approval workflow. |
| Back to Draft | In Review | Returns the pay run to Draft so you can make additional edits or recalculate. |
| Approve | In Review | Moves the pay run to Approved status. |
| Back to In Review | Approved | Sends the pay run back to In Review if a final check reveals an issue before finalization. |
| Finalize Payroll | Approved | Locks the pay run permanently and generates payslips. This action is irreversible. |
| Run for Previous Months | Run Payroll tab | Opens a panel to create a pay run for a past pay period. |
| View Details | Payrolls History | Opens the full detail page of a finalized pay run. |
| Download (Excel / PDF) | Pay Run Detail page | Exports pay run data. Excel for bulk records; PDF for formatted payslip reports. |
Pay Run Detail Page
Clicking into any pay run opens the detail page.
Header Summary
- Pay Group name, pay period date range, and current status.
- Action buttons relevant to the current status.
- Download dropdown for Excel and PDF exports.
Employee Summary Table
A searchable and sortable table of every employee included in this pay run:
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| Employee Name | Clickable. Opens the employee payroll transaction detail panel. |
| Gross Salary | Total earnings before deductions. |
| Total Deductions | Sum of all deductions (PF, ESI, TDS, etc.). |
| Tax Deductions | TDS and other tax-related deductions. |
| Net Pay | Take-home salary after all deductions (Gross minus Deductions). |
| Final Payable | Net Pay plus any approved reimbursements. The actual amount transferred to the employee. |
| Actions | Per-employee menu. You can enable or disable an individual employee's entry for this pay run. Disabled employees are excluded from salary calculations and will not receive a payslip for this period. |
Employee Payroll Transaction Panel
Click any employee's name to see their full payroll breakdown in a side panel:
- Employee name, ID, Net Pay, and Final Payable
- PF Number, UAN Number, PAN Number (if configured)
- Payment status (Paid / Unpaid)
- Payable Days, Working Days, Leaves, Overtime Hours
- Option to manually add LOP (Loss of Pay) days to this employee's record for the current pay run
- Full earnings and deductions breakdown table
Salary Snapshot and Recalculation
When a pay run is created, the system records a snapshot of each employee's salary structure at that point in time. This snapshot is what drives the calculations for that pay run.
What this means for you
- If you update an employee's salary structure after a pay run has been created, those changes will not automatically carry over to the existing pay run.
- To apply the latest salary, attendance, or deduction changes to a pay run that is still in Draft, use the Recalculate option. This refreshes all employee figures based on the most current data.
- Any manual adjustments you have made within the Draft pay run — such as added LOP days for a specific employee — are preserved when you recalculate, unless the recalculation directly overrides them.
- Once a pay run is Finalized, the snapshot is permanently locked. Changes to salary structures or deduction settings after finalization have no effect on that pay run.
Finalized payslips always reflect what was correct at the time they were generated. Historical pay runs are never altered by future salary or configuration changes.
What recalculation updates
When you recalculate a Draft pay run, it picks up:
- Changes to an employee's salary components or CTC
- Updated attendance or leave data for the pay period
- Changes to deduction settings (PF, ESI, PT, TDS)
- Updated Loss of Pay (LOP) days
Proration — Partial Month Salary
Proration is the automatic adjustment of an employee's salary when they do not work for the full pay cycle. The system calculates salary only for the days the employee was active.
New Joiners
When an employee joins mid-cycle, their salary for that period is calculated from their joining date to the end of the pay cycle. Days before they joined are not counted as payable days.
Employee Exits
When an employee leaves mid-cycle, their salary is calculated up to and including their last working day. Any days after the exit date are excluded from the payable calculation.
Loss of Pay (LOP) Deductions
If an employee has unpaid absences during the pay cycle, those days reduce their payable salary:
- Each full day of unpaid absence reduces payable days by 1.
- Each half-day unpaid absence counts as 0.5 LOP days.
- Statutory deductions such as PF and ESI are recalculated on the adjusted gross salary after LOP is applied.
LOP days can be reviewed and manually adjusted for individual employees from within a Draft pay run. Open the pay run, click the employee's name, and update the LOP days in the transaction panel.
Payrolls History
The Payrolls History tab shows all finalized pay runs. Use the Pay Group filter to narrow the list. Each card displays the Pay Group name, date range, status, net pay total, payment date, and number of employees.
Click View Details to see the full breakdown of any historical pay run.
Warnings
Once a pay run is in Finalized status, it is locked. If you change a Pay Group's pay cycle dates or payable days type after finalization, the historical pay run data and the new configuration will be inconsistent. Make structural changes only in the gap between pay cycles.
Do not move an employee to a different Pay Group mid-cycle. Reassigning an employee from one Pay Group to another mid-pay period may result in the employee being double-counted or excluded from the current run. Perform Pay Group changes at the start of a new pay period.
Finalized pay runs are permanent and cannot be undone. Always review employee-level details, verify payable days, check for LOP entries, and confirm total net pay figures before clicking Finalize Payroll. A reversal requires manual correction entries in a subsequent pay run.
If an employee has not been assigned a Pay Group and salary structure, they will not appear in the pay run employee list and will receive no payslip for that period. Always verify the employee count shown on the pay run card matches your expected headcount.
Best Practices
- Always review the Draft pay run before submission. Click each employee's name to verify payable days, LOP, and net salary.
- Download the pay run as Excel before finalizing for a final sense-check against your own records.
- Set the Attendance Cutoff Day carefully — if payroll is run on the 5th, set the cutoff to 4 or earlier so all attendance for the previous period has been recorded.
- Catching errors at Draft stage costs nothing. Catching them after finalization requires a correction pay run.
Related Setup
- Pay Groups — configure pay run type and approval settings
- Salary Structure — ensure all employees have an assigned salary structure before running payroll
- Payslip Templates — set the active template before finalizing