Uploading allowances to payslips

This article is for Australian Xero users; setup and features are specific to that region. NZ allowances can be uploaded as usual via Payslips. UK users cannot currently upload to Payslips until Xero enables it (why?).

How allowances are uploaded in UpSheets depends on how they are set up as Pay Items in Xero. Allowances can be added to an employee payslip using the Payslips upload option. They may also be uploaded as timesheets if they:

• Have Rate Type = Multiple; or
• Have Rate Type = Rate per unit and Type of units = hours; or
• Have Rate Type = Rate per unit and Type of units = The same time unit used for the Ordinary Earnings Type of the Employee (Days/Weeks etc)

There is no single right way – it depends what suits your business. If your pay items are set up for timesheets and you do not currently use the Payslips upload, uploading allowances as timesheets is often easier.

Pay Item Setup

Below are the main ways allowance pay items can be set up in Xero:

Download a sample CSV file

Fixed Amount

A fixed allowance lets you upload a fixed dollar amount to the payslip for an employee. The upload file must contain the following columns/values:

• first_name & last_name OR full_name
• type (the name of the Pay Item)
• rate (the total dollar amount)
• calculation_type (=FIXED AMOUNT)

Rate per Unit

A rate per unit allowance lets you upload a rate and a unit to the payslip for an employee. The upload file must contain the following columns/values:

• first_name & last_name OR full_name
• type (the name of the Pay Item)
• rate (the rate per unit)
• hours (the number of units)

Rate per Unit (Preset)

A rate per unit (preset) allowance lets you upload the number of units to the payslip when the rate is set on the Pay Item in Xero. The upload file must contain the following columns/values:

• first_name & last_name OR full_name
• type (the name of the Pay Item)
• hours (the number of units)

Multiple

Multiple allowances let you upload the number of units that are a multiple of the ordinary earnings rate for each employee. These must be uploaded as timesheet lines or validation will likely fail on the payslip upload.

Upload and validation

The Payslips upload option is required to add allowances to a payslip; the payslip must already exist in Xero.

When validated, the allowances appear as below:

Payslip

After upload to the payslip in Xero, the allowances appear as below: