Accurate, on-time payroll every cycle
Employees and contractors are paid correctly and on schedule, with clear approvals and documentation.
Full-Service Payroll & Payroll Tax Compliance
We design and run your payroll operations end-to-end—onboarding, pay runs, payroll tax filings, W-2s/1099s, and compliance—so your team gets paid correctly and you stay out of trouble with tax agencies.
Multi-state payroll
Payroll tax compliance
CPA oversight
This engagement is limited exclusively to payroll processing and payroll tax compliance. Services related to human resources, employee benefits, or compensation strategy are expressly excluded from the scope of this engagement.
Fit check
Is this where your payroll sits today?
You’re a fit for this service if some of these sound familiar:
- Payroll is being run by a founder, office manager, or bookkeeper “on the side,” and it’s becoming a risk.
- You’ve added team members in new states and aren’t fully confident all registrations and filings are in place.
- You’ve had payroll notices or penalty letters and want them to stop.
- Your current provider runs the software but doesn’t connect the dots between payroll, your books, and your tax picture.
- You want one accountable firm to own the end-to-end payroll process and tell you what needs to happen when.
Outcomes
What you get with Full-Service Payroll
Payroll taxes handled for you
Registrations, filings, and payments are managed through the payroll platform and overseen by us, reducing surprise notices and penalties.
Clean connection to your books
Payroll entries and allocations are aligned to your chart of accounts so financials reflect reality and tax prep is easier.
Less administrative drag on leadership
Your leadership team stops babysitting payroll and can focus on hiring, performance, and growth instead of mechanics.
Scope
What’s included in Full-Service Payroll
1. Payroll platform setup & configuration
- Configure or refine your payroll platform (e.g., Gusto, QuickBooks Payroll, other cloud payroll) based on entity structure and compensation types.
- Set up earnings types (salary, hourly, overtime, bonuses, commissions) and standard deductions/benefits within the system.
- Align payroll GL mapping with your chart of accounts, classes, and locations so postings land correctly in your books.
2. Employee & contractor onboarding in the system
- Coordinate onboarding of new hires in the payroll platform (personal info, tax forms, direct deposit, pay rate, and benefits elections as applicable).
- Set up and maintain contractor profiles for 1099-NEC reporting (where in scope).
- Maintain status changes in the system (terminations, leaves, changes in compensation structure) based on your HR inputs.
3. Recurring payroll processing
- Run regular payroll cycles (weekly, biweekly, semi-monthly, or monthly) on an agreed calendar.
- Process variable items such as approved bonuses, commissions, and overtime based on data you provide.
- Validate payroll drafts before finalization and route summaries for your approval before funds are released.
4. Off-cycle runs & adjustments
- Handle off-cycle payroll runs for corrections, terminations, and special payouts when required.
- Process adjustments and true-ups in the payroll system with documentation and supporting notes.
5. Payroll tax filings & payments
- Enable and manage electronic payroll tax filing and payment through the payroll platform for in-scope jurisdictions.
- Monitor scheduled filings (federal, state, and applicable local) and address routine notices tied to payroll filings.
- Coordinate new state payroll registrations when you add employees in new states (registration work may be quoted separately depending on scope).
6. Year-end W-2s & 1099s
- Generate and distribute year-end W-2 forms for employees through the payroll platform.
- Prepare 1099-NEC forms for in-scope contractors paid via the payroll system, including electronic filing where available.
7. GL tie-out & support schedules
- Provide payroll journal summaries for import or automated sync into your accounting system.
- Assist in reconciling payroll-related balance sheet accounts (wages payable, payroll tax payable, etc.) as part of your broader close process where we are engaged.
Guardrails
What’s not included in this service
We keep this engagement focused on payroll operations
To keep this engagement focused and predictable, the following are not part of standard Full-Service Payroll:
- Formal HR advisory (handbooks, employee relations, terminations strategy, performance management, or employment law guidance).
- Benefits brokerage, plan design, or legal plan document work (we coordinate data with your benefits providers but do not act as broker of record).
- Equity compensation administration outside what the payroll system directly supports (option plans, cap table management, etc.).
- Union payroll, certified payroll reporting, or highly specialized industry payroll unless explicitly scoped.
- Formal representation in payroll tax audits beyond routine notice responses tied to filings we facilitated.
When needs extend into HR, benefits, or complex compensation design, we can coordinate with your legal, HR, or benefits partners and expand scope under a separate engagement if appropriate.
Process
How the engagement works
1
Discovery & current-state review
We review your current payroll platform, headcount, states, pay frequencies, and any existing issues or notices. You share recent payroll reports and access to your system or provider.
2
Design & onboarding
We agree on payroll calendars, approval workflows, and data handoff responsibilities. We configure or refine the payroll platform and align GL mapping with your chart of accounts.
3
Initial cycles & stabilization
We run the first several cycles with extra review, validate calculations and postings, and address any issues or state registration gaps.
4
Ongoing operations
We manage recurring payroll processing, tax filings, and year-end forms on the agreed cadence, with clear checkpoints for your approvals.
5
Review & adjustments over time
As you add states, change headcount, or revise compensation structures, we update configurations and workflows so payroll scales with your growth.
Pricing overview
What this typically costs
See Pricing MatrixFees for Full-Service Payroll are structured as a fixed monthly fee based primarily on headcount, number of entities and states, pay frequencies, and complexity of compensation.
Smaller, single-entity clients with one or two states and straightforward pay structures fall into lower monthly tiers. Multi-entity, multi-state, or more complex environments (frequent off-cycle runs, bonuses, commissions) price higher. We review your current setup, scope the work, and agree on a fixed monthly fee before we take over processing. One-time implementation and cleanup work, if needed, is quoted separately.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Do you replace our current payroll provider?
Not necessarily. In many cases we take over design and day-to-day operation of your existing cloud payroll system. If your current platform is a poor fit, we may recommend migrating to a more appropriate provider as part of the engagement.
Who actually approves payroll before it runs?
You do. Our team prepares and reviews each run, but designated client approvers sign off on payroll before funds are released. We build this approval workflow into the platform so it’s consistent every cycle.
Can you help with payroll tax notices we already have?
Typically, yes. As part of onboarding we review open payroll-related notices and determine what can be resolved under this engagement versus what may require a separate clean-up project or representation arrangement.
Do you also handle benefits administration?
Our core payroll engagement focuses on pay, payroll taxes, and related filings. We coordinate with your benefits broker and providers for data and deductions but do not act as benefits broker of record or administer plans end-to-end.
Ready to take payroll off your plate?
Share your headcount, states, current platform, and pain points, and we’ll confirm fit, define the scope, and quote a fixed monthly fee before any work begins.
Request a Consultation