Question 1

Can I upload Full Name instead of First / Last Name?

Accepted Answer

UpSheets gives you the option to either load:

First Name and Last Name; or
Full Name

If you have a full name field in your spreadsheet that you wish to split into columns, you can use the Text to Columns feature in Excel or a formula as below to separate the Full Name into First/Last.

These formulas would split the value "Mary Smith" in cell A2 into "Mary" and "Smith". You can place them in new columns and copy them down to apply to all of your data.

First Name: =LEFT(A2,FIND(" ",A2,1)-1)

Last Name: =RIGHT(A2,LEN(A2)-FIND(" ",A2,1))

Question 2

Can I upload Draft Timesheets or Approve them after upload?

Accepted Answer

Yes.

The default option for uploading timesheets to Xero is a status of Draft. If you would like to upload timesheets with a status of Approved, just select the appropriate radio button when importing your file to UpSheets.

https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/j0x2GOjMS3/resources/aCZKd1XYcp/10.png (10.png)

Alternatively, you may select the Approve All button after uploading your file to Xero and UpSheets will approve all eligible timesheets for you.

Question 3

Can I upload timesheets that are after the current pay period for the employee?

Accepted Answer

Unfortunately not, this is a limitation of Xero.

You can only create/update timesheets for the employee's next pay run or for the period of an existing Draft Pay Run.

In order to add timesheets for the next period, you must first create the current pay run.

Question 4

Can I add comments to my file or have UpSheets ignore certain rows?

Accepted Answer

Yes.

As well as ignoring blank rows, UpSheets will also ignore any row that has a '#' as the first character of the first cell (without the quotes).

So if you have some calculations or comments in your spreadsheet that you wish to be ignored, just add a '#' at the start of the first cell and it will be ignored when validated.

Question 5

How can I load Earnings Adjustments as Timesheets in the same file

Accepted Answer

When loading Timesheets and Earnings Adjustments in the same file, UpSheets will assume the Earnings lines are meant to be treated as Earnings Adjustments, not timesheets. If you wish the opposite to happen, you can either load the file without the Adjustment option selected as below:

https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/j0x2GOjMS3/resources/jw7nm9IWbS/12.png (12.png)

Or alternatively, choose Setting from the top-right menu and select Prefer timesheets not adjustments. When any lines are loaded, they will now be treated as Timesheets and not Adjustments.

Question 6

Update Employee Earnings Rates from CSV File

Accepted Answer

Overview

A CSV file can be used to bulk update Ordinary Earnings Rates for Employees. This is useful for situations where you may be updating the base rates for multiple employees after an annual pay review or similar.

This functionality is currently only available for :

Users with an active subscription
Users in Australia (please contact us if you need this in UK/NZ)

This function only updates the ordinary earnings rate for the employee and does not change any other settings (such as the number of hours or calculation type)

File Format

The file format required can contain any number of columns, but it must contain the following with the header row:

If the file has multiple columns for first_name, last_name they can be easily combined using a formula in Excel such as =CONCAT(A2," ",B2)

Download a sample file

Updating

The process works as follows:

Select the file and click Validate File.

https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/j0x2GOjMS3/resources/4gmeAow8Vn/update_er_file.png (update_er_file)

The validation results are displayed. If there are any errors, these records will not be loaded. To resolve them, update the file and repeat step 1.

https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/j0x2GOjMS3/resources/yvHKy6mX3G/update_er_validated.png (update_er_validated)

Once all records are validated OK, click Update Earnings Rates to update Xero.

https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/j0x2GOjMS3/resources/0JTnVhVFYr/update_er_done.png (update_er_done)

Question 7

Overwriting Existing Xero Payslip Adjustments

Accepted Answer

Default Behaviour

The default behaviour when uploading payslip adjustments to Xero is to overwrite all existing adjustments on the payslip, so whatever you load will be all that exists for any given category (other than earnings created from timesheets and system generated lines such as tax).

For example, if you are uploading earnings, then any existing earnings will be overwritten, but the remainder of the payslip remains. So if you load 'Ordinary Hours' you will also overwrite any 'Overtime Hours' or 'Allowances' etc that aren't loaded via an approved timesheet.

For example - loading an Ordinary Hours line (10 Hours x $100)
Payslip Before

https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/j0x2GOjMS3/resources/sfSLSr3HJ6/adj_before.png (adj_before)

Payslip After

https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/j0x2GOjMS3/resources/jRfYQXq5A1/adj_default.png (adj_default)

Alternative Behaviour

It is possible to modify this in your user settings so that only the specific types you are uploading will be overwritten. To do so, select the option below and revalidate your file:

https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/j0x2GOjMS3/resources/AnA8dKFAip/Dont%20Overwrite%20Payslip%20Setting.png (Dont Overwrite Payslip Setting)

By changing this setting, if you load 'Ordinary Hours' you will only overwrite existing 'Ordinary Hours', not any 'Overtime Hours' or 'Allowances' etc (or any other categories such as reimbursements deductions etc).

For example - loading an Ordinary Hours line (10 Hours x $100)

Payslip Before

https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/j0x2GOjMS3/resources/sfSLSr3HJ6/adj_before.png (adj_before)

Payslip After

Question 8

Payroll Setup is Incomplete

Accepted Answer

In order to use Xero Payroll, you must set it up correctly. If the setup is incomplete, UpSheets will ask you to check your payroll settings and retry.

Check your Xero User

If you have updated the Xero user who was originally used to connect UpSheets, this may be the cause. If the user has changed permissions or details it may be necessary to try and reconnect to Xero again to refresh the connection. This must be done with a Xero user with Payroll/Projects access -Click here for instructions

If Using a Xero Demo Org

The most common scenario in which this occurs is when a new demo organisation is used. Payroll setup is complete, except for the final step of viewing the overview page. Xero has made this mandatory before you can use Payroll.

To resolve it - simply navigate to the Payroll> Overview page and wait for it to load and reconnect your organisation (or login to UpSheets again).

Payroll Setup Nav

https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/j0x2GOjMS3/resources/UXDk1oB2VQ/setup1.png (Payroll Setup Nav)

Question 9

Overwrite Approved Timesheets

Accepted Answer

****This functionality is only available for users in NZ/UK*

You can allow approved timesheets to be overwritten by selecting the option Allow approved timesheets to be overwritten (NZ/UK Only) in your user settings.

A warning message will then be displayed instead of an error and you can then upload the timesheet.

Question 10

Can I upload multiple payslip adjustments and summarise them?

Accepted Answer

Default Behaviour

By default each earnings row in your upload file will be loaded as a unique row on your payslip, just as in your file.

For example, if your file has following lines, they will be loaded as individual lines on the payslip.

To Allow Duplicates

Go to your user settings, select the option Sum totals for duplicate payslip adjustments and save.

When this setting is on, it will add up the totals for all duplicate records with the same type and rate and upload a single paylsip line in Xero.

You will receive a warning to indicate the totals will be summarised and can turn the feature on and off at any time.

For example, if your file has following lines:

Will be uploaded as follows: