Important AlertsAssisted Payroll sign-up guide
Article ID: 2000211
PrintOverview
This guide describes the steps involved in signing up for Assisted Payroll.
Assumptions
You are in front of your computer, you have gathered all the items needed to complete the form, and you are signing up for Assisted Payroll.
Details
Make sure you have the basic requirements for Assisted Payroll:
Here's what you'll need in order to sign up for Assisted Payroll Service:
- A registered version of QuickBooks desktop
- Internet access
Choose a payroll option:
To start the process of signing up for Assisted Payroll Service in QuickBooks, you must choose a payroll option.
- In QuickBooks, choose Employees > Set Up Payroll.
- Select the Assisted Payroll option.
- Company legal name and address
- Federal Employer Identification Number (FEIN)
- Principal name
- Payroll Administrator name, if applicable
- Payroll service bank account name, routing number, and account number
- Payroll Service Fees - Intuit will debit your payroll bank account for monthly fees and any applicable payroll fees.
- Cancel - you may cancel your payroll subscription at any time by calling 800.624.2106.
Complete the online application:
To complete the online application, you'll verify some existing QuickBooks information and fill out some simple payroll-specific forms in the Welcome Packet. This interview-based process helps you complete the necessary federal and state enrollment forms.
To access and complete the online application:
To access and complete the online application:
- In QuickBooks, choose Employees > My Payroll Service > Activate Assisted Payroll.
- The Interview Wizard opens.
- Enter the information requested on each page of the interview.
- When you complete the interview questions, click Place My Order.
- Complete the Welcome Packet by printing form 8655 (Reporting Agent Authorization) and the Limited Power of Attorney form, having your company principal sign these forms, and faxing them to us at 888.437.8001.
Create your payroll pin:
After you complete the online application, our system generates 2 small debits that reach the bank account you assigned for your payroll in 24 to 48 business hours. You need to locate the 2 debit amounts and enter them into QuickBooks to create your payroll PIN.
To create your Payoll PIN:
To create your Payoll PIN:
- In QuickBooks, choose Employees > My Payroll Service > Activate Assisted Payroll.
- The Interview Wizard opens.
- Follow the prompts and enter the 2 small debit amounts to create your payroll PIN.
Set up your QuickBooks Assisted Payroll company file:
After you create your payroll PIN, it's time to confirm and review the information you have entered into QuickBooks about your company, making changes and additions as needed.
To set up your company file:
To set up your company file:
- In QuickBooks, choose Employees > Payroll Setup. The Payroll Setup Wizard appears (it may take a minute to load).
- Follow the prompts through all the steps in the Payroll Setup Wizard (for descriptions of these steps, see the next section) to review or create the items needed. These items include Compensation, Employees, Taxes, and any payroll history you may have.
Steps in the Payroll Setup Wizard
These descriptions of the 6 steps in the Payroll Setup Wizard explain what each step involves and what information you need to have available.
Introduction
This step reviews what you'll be doing in the Payroll Setup Wizard.
Company Setup
This step walks you through setting up your company payroll information.
Here's what information you need to have on hand:
Here's what information you need to have on hand:
- Compensation information. (hourly, salary, tips, bonuses)
- Employee benefit information (health insurance, retirement, paid time off)
- Other payroll deductions and additions (wage garnishments, mileage)
Employee Setup
This step walks you through setting up your employees, including their W4 information, payroll items, and any benefits that apply. Be sure to include all employees that you have paid during this calendar year, whether they still work for you or not. Here's what information you need to have on hand:
- A W4 for each employee.
- Compensation information (hourly rate, yearly salary, commission)
- Direct deposit information for each employee (if applicable).
- Benefits information (401K, wage garnishment, paid time off)
Taxes
This step walks you through setting up all your State and Federal Taxes.
Here's what information you need to have on hand:
Here's what information you need to have on hand:
- State Withholding and Unemployment Tax identification/account numbers. (Some states use 1 number for both state withholding and unemployment taxes others have different account numbers for each type of tax).
- State Unemployment Tax rate information
Year-to-date payrolls
This step walks you through entering all of your year-to-date payroll history and tax payments starting in January. If you have no payroll history for the year, you can skip this step.
Here's what information you need to have on hand:
Here's what information you need to have on hand:
- Year-to-date payroll information (for closed quarters, you need a quarterly report that shows each employee's quarterly earnings; for an open quarter, you need the payroll information for each payroll run for each employee)
- Prior tax and liabilities payments information
Data review
This step is made of two sub-steps:
- Review your payroll data.
This sub-step walks you through your wage and tax data review. It compares your year-to-date entries to your payroll items and tax items. If you have errors it generates a report for you, so you can correct your year-to-date entries. - Reconcile your payroll tax forms to your payroll data.
This sub-step walks you through entering your 941 form and state agency filed forms, then it helps you reconcile the data. If you have errors, you'll need to correct your entries.
- The Federal 941 form for each quarter you have filed for the year
- The State agency quarterly forms filed for each quarter you have filed for the year
Related Articles
For auto-renewal and cancelation terms, see your QuickBooks software license agreement.
How to cancel Assisted payroll
Cancel Assisted, Complete, Standard, Enhanced, or Basic payroll service
