Getting Started: Common Questions
Q. How do I run payroll?
A. Click on your employee's initials on the main dashboard. Enter the hours (pay periods are weekly) and any overtime hours. Click Continue and review the summary. If it looks correct and doesn’t need editing, click Approve. Once you approve it a screen will come up to select how you want to pay the “on the books” amount.
Q. How does my employee receive the after-tax wage payment?
A. You can choose what works best for you and your employee:
Integrated mobile payments (Square’s Cash App or Venmo)
Pay separately with your banking app or write a check
Q. How do I use Venmo or Square’s CashApp to pay my employee?
A. We have integrated Square’s Cash App and Venmo into the pay stub. This is super fast and easy and your employee receives the “on the books” payment quickly.
Step 1: make sure you already have Venmo or Square’s Cash App on the same device you run Nest Payroll, and your employee has been added as a friend/family contact (your employee is NOT a business and will receive a W-2 for taxes).
Step 2: Create and approve a pay stub.
Step 3: When approved, you will see the option to select Venmo or Cash App. Click on your choice and enter your employee’s Venmo or Cash App ID. Nest Payroll will remember this going forward.
Q. What are other ways to pay my employee besides integrated Venmo / Cash App?
A. Many employers pay through Zelle, which you would use separately (we’d love to integrate Zelle but at this time they integrate with banks only). Each time you approve the paystub, you will have a message telling you the amount of the paycheck (after tax amount). Simply pay that amount through Zelle, or set up a direct bank transfer with your bank or write a paper check. To make paying easier with your own banking app, Nest Payroll has a “Copy” button after you approve the pay stub that can be “Pasted” into many mobile banking apps.
Q. I want to pay every two weeks but only see weekly as the option.
A. We have weekly pay periods because government agencies require hourly/non-exempt wages to be evidenced in weekly periods due to overtime laws, and some states mandate weekly payroll for household employees (NY for example). If you prefer to pay every two weeks here’s how:
Pay two pay stubs at the same time every two weeks (the pay stubs remain as weekly).
You can also use the recurring pay stub option so you won't need to remember or double check which weeks you paid. The pay stubs will be waiting for review on the main dashboard. Every two weeks you simply approve the two pay stubs waiting on your dashboard, and you can always edit the hours or the other items if you need to before approving each one.
Q. Oops, I approved a pay stub and I realize it’s wrong. Can I delete it and create a new one?
A. It depends on the timing.
You have 24 hours from the approval of the pay stub to cancel it. After that, send us a text right from the app (scroll down on the main dashboard) and tell us the amount and the pay period so we can identify it. We’ll delete it for you and you can create a new one. We can also adjust the pay period for you if the pay stub is otherwise correct.
Q. How do I setup sick time for my employee and track it?
A. Enter the total upfront hours of sick time your employee would receive for a full year. The Nest Payroll app will prorate it according to the time remaining in the calendar year. If your state law suggests accrual (for ex, 1 hour of sick time per 30 hours worked), entering the hours upfront meets the requirements.
Accrual Examples for 1 hour/30 worked:
Part-time employee (works 20 hours each week):
20 hours x 52 weeks = 1,040 hours
1,040 / 30 = 34.67 (round this up to a whole number)
Enter 35 hours upfront sick time, hours will be prorated depending on the time of the year
Full-time Employee:
40 hours x 52 weeks = 2,080 hours
2,080 / 30 = 69.33 (round this up to a whole number)
Enter 70 hours upfront sick time, hours will be prorated depending on the time of the year
Each week, if sick time has been taken, simply enter the hours taken in the sick time box when creating the pay stub. The sick time balance will get updated and your employee will see this on the most recent pay stub.
Q. How do the taxes get paid?
Each quarter we handle your taxes. We’ll report/file to your state and the IRS and facilitate your tax payments. We’ll send you an in-app notification as a heads-up when it’s tax time, and you’ll see a debit to your bank account you entered when you onboarded. There’s no work on your part other than making sure your bank account has the funds for withdrawal.
State tax time: April, July, October and January
Federal tax time: April, June, September, January (1040 Estimated Payments)
By the end of January, you will receive your Schedule H and your employe’s W-2.
Q. How do taxes work for my employee?
Each time you pay your employee, there will be a portion of the total "gross" pay that is withheld/deducted, so you give a payment for less (the "net" paycheck amount). That difference will be part of the tax payment you make each quarter that we handle for you. So, each quarter you'll pay your employer taxes (about 10% of wages) PLUS the portion that your employee owes (that you withheld). You will receive a W-2 in January in your Tax Summary that you will need to share with your employee (text/email/print). Employees will need to include their W-2s when they file their personal income tax returns.
Q. Why are the taxes different throughout the year?
A. Your quarterly taxes due to the IRS and your state can vary even if you pay the same amount every pay period. Here’s why: Federal tax “quarters” cover four pay periods that are not equal in length. The first pay period is three months (Jan/Feb/Mar), the second is only two months long (Apr/May), the third is three months long (Jun/Jul/Aug) and the fourth pay period is four months long (Sep/Oct/Nov/Dec). The second pay period will see the least amount due and the fourth pay period will see the most due.
State taxes also vary. Most unemployment tax is paid up to a certain amount of wages, and then it stops being owed. For ex, an employer pays Unemployment tax on the first $7,000 wages only, so taxes will go down once you have crossed that threshold. All states work the same way but the threshold amount varies.
Q. When do I receive my Schedule H and my employees’ W-2?
A. Your tax forms will be delivered into your Tax Summary (in the app) by the end of January. We’ll send you an in-app notification when they are ready.
W2s for your employees end of January.
W2/W3s filed at year-end with the Social Security Administration.
A signature-ready Schedule H for April tax time that you can also share easily with your Accountant.