Home / Help Center / Prepare, lock, and approve a payroll run
Payroll & Compliance

Prepare, lock, and approve a payroll run

Admins & HR 11 minutes Step 12 of 13

Use approved time, statutory pay, and payroll settings to review the month, freeze the run, and share payslips confidently.

What should be ready before payroll

  • Timesheets reviewed and approved.
  • Contracts and tax details complete.
  • Any statutory pay entries added.
  • Relevant bonuses or taxable additions configured.
  • Employee bank and identity details checked.

Recommended payroll sequence

  1. Open the payroll month and preview employee totals.
  2. Review outliers before freezing anything.
  3. Create the payroll run for the month.
  4. Inspect gross pay, tax, NI, pension, student loan, and employer cost totals.
  5. Lock the run once it reflects the intended payroll position.
  6. Approve the run after final review.
  7. Export the required files and publish payslips.

Screenshot placeholder: capture an approved payroll run with totals, export buttons, and a payslip link visible. Recommended image size: 1600 x 1000.

What to review carefully

  • Unexpected gross pay spikes.
  • Missing allowances or duplicated additions.
  • Employees without complete tax data.
  • Any reopened or manually adjusted records.

After approval

Once approved, use the exports required for your payroll or finance process and make payslips available to employees through self-service where appropriate.