Table of Contents

Approve, correct, or cancel a payroll run

Check calculated payroll results and decide whether to approve the run, cancel and recalculate it, or release it for payment and posting. Payroll specialists perform this work; if the approval process is active, a second authorized person takes part. This step follows immediately after processing payroll. At the same time, you can send payslips; ISO 20022 payment and posting follow.

Prerequisites

  • The definitive payroll run is calculated and visible on the Payrolls page. For more information, see Perform a payroll run.
  • You have access to Payrolls and the check reports, including at least the payslip, difference list, and salary entries.
  • Variances from the previous month are resolved or documented. For more information, see Compare payroll runs and resolve variances.
  • To approve a run, the approval process is enabled in Payroll Setup and a second authorized person is available.

Check payroll results

  1. Open the Payrolls page.
  2. Select the run that you want to check.
  3. Check payslips, salary entries, and the difference list.
  4. Reconcile the number of employees and the gross, deduction, and net values.
  5. Check bank payments and special cases such as new hires, departures, retroactive changes, and withholding tax.
Wichtig

Approval doesn't replace a professional check. It only confirms that the checked run can be used for subsequent actions.

Approve the payroll run

If the approval process is active:

  1. Select the checked run.
  2. Choose Workflow and then Approve.
  3. Check that the approval date and approving person are entered.

The person who calculated the payroll run can't approve the same run. A run that is already approved can't be approved again. Without approval, SwissSalary blocks both the ISO 20022 export and posting.

Correct errors before posting or cancel the payroll run

If the check identifies a calculation error:

  1. Don't pay the run.
  2. Cancel the open run.
  3. Correct the incorrect master data, TimeMachine data, or journal information.
  4. Run the test and plausibility checks again.
  5. Create a new definitive payroll run.
  6. Repeat the professional check and, if required, the approval.

When you cancel, SwissSalary removes the payroll headers, salary entries, posted bank data, and other subsequent information created for the run. The affected journal and time data is then available again for correction and recalculation.

You can't cancel a posted run with this action.

Handle a cancellation block

When creating a payment file, SwissSalary can set the Cancellation Block. The run then appears as unposted but is protected against accidental cancellation.

Reset the block only after you have confirmed that no bank payment was executed:

  1. Select the unposted, blocked run.
  2. Choose Reset Cancellation Block.
  3. Read the warning about incorrect or duplicate payments.
  4. Confirm only if the bank hasn't processed the file.
  5. Then cancel the run and create a new payment file after making the correction.
Warnung

Never reset the cancellation block while a payment file might still be processing in e-banking. Otherwise, exporting again can result in duplicate payments.

Decide based on status

Situation Action
The run is open and correct Approve if required, then pay and post
The run is open and incorrect Cancel it, correct the underlying data, and process payroll again
The run is unposted and has a cancellation block Clarify the payment status outside SwissSalary; reset the block only if no payment was executed
The run is posted Users can no longer cancel the run; determine the professional and accounting correction process
Hinweis

Fully reversing a payroll run that has already been posted and might have been paid isn't part of this process. Coordinate such a case with the responsible payroll and finance specialists.

Good to know

  • You treat approval as the professional check—it only releases the run for payment and posting, so net-salary errors remain unnoticed.
  • The same person who calculated the run approves it—the four-eyes check is lost.
  • You reset the Cancellation Block while the bank file might still be processing in e-banking—duplicate payments can occur.
  • You try to reset a posted run with Cancel Payroll—this isn't possible; you need the accounting correction process.

See also