Freelancers and consultants
Payroll software for small consultancies and first hires
Payroll only matters once someone joins you. When a junior designer or a second consultant does, pay them on time with a proper payslip, from the same place you invoice.
In short
SimpleERP is payroll software for small consultancies and freelancers who have started hiring. Set basic pay and deductions per person, mark attendance and leave on the phone, and post each month's salaries to the books.
Illustration of a payslip with Basic salary, Allowances, Bonus and net pay of 4,440.
A payroll day at Maya Lindqvist Studio
After three years alone, Maya Lindqvist Studio hired its first employee in July: Tom, a junior designer on $4,000 a month who works three days from the co-working desk and two from home. In October a training coordinator joined part-time to run workshop logistics.
Maya still bills milestones and retainers herself, and a freelance illustrator in Christchurch sends her an invoice for each piece he draws. On the last working day of the month she wants two payslips that are right, salaries out by bank transfer, and the illustrator kept clearly outside payroll.
Who goes on payroll, and who sends me a bill?
Anyone on a monthly salary is an employee and belongs in payroll. A freelancer who invoices you for work is a supplier: record their invoice as a purchase bill or an expense, and pay it like any other bill.
- Employees: salary structure, attendance, leave, payslip.
- Subcontractors: a supplier bill with their tax, if they charge it, as tax you can reclaim.
- You, the owner: what you take out is drawings, not a salary; ask your accountant.
What goes on a first employee's payslip?
Set a salary structure once and every month starts from it. Tom's gross of $4,000 is basic pay with income tax and a retirement savings contribution taken off, at amounts you set from your country's rules.
- Employer contributions, such as a matching pension share, as their own component.
- Income tax is a deduction you set per person from their tax code or details.
- Bonus or arrears added to a single payslip before you approve the run.
| Component | Earning or deduction | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Basic | Earning | $4,000 |
| Income tax withheld | Deduction | $720 |
| Retirement savings, 3% | Deduction | $120 |
| Net pay | $3,160 | |
| Employer retirement savings, 3% | Employer contribution | $120 |
Illustration of a payslip with Basic salary, Allowances, Bonus and net pay of 4,440.
How do work-from-home days and leave reach the salary?
Each employee marks attendance from their phone, with work from home as its own status. Leave requests come to you for approval, and the balance updates at once. The monthly run reads both, so an unpaid day comes off without you counting.
- Self-service on the phone: attendance, leave balance and past payslips.
- One default shift seeded for you, which suits a small office.
- Holidays set once for the year, so they never count as absences.
Illustration of the daily attendance sheet on a phone with a Mark all present button.
Can I give a salary advance and recover it from later pay?
Yes. Pay the advance with a monthly recovery amount, and each payroll run deducts it until the advance is settled. The advances page shows what was paid, recovered and still due, so the balance is never a note in a diary.
- Tom's $600 advance with $200 recovered a month is cleared in three runs.
- The payroll register shows every employee's gross, deductions and net for the month.
- Salaries post as one journal to salary expense and salaries payable.
One system
What it connects to
Attendance and leave feed the payroll run, the run posts salaries and deductions to the ledger, and the P&L shows what the team costs against what you bill.
Freelancers and consultants
Tax invoices, advances and milestones, tax withheld by clients and expenses for one-person practices.
See howAccounting for freelancers
A ledger that keeps itself from your invoices and expenses, tax withheld by clients as a receivable, and a P&L your accountant can read.
See howInventory for freelancers
Most freelancers can skip stock. For the few who sell workshop kits, printed workbooks or merchandise, a count per shelf at average cost.
See howPayroll
Salary structures, monthly runs and payslips with your earnings and deductions, posted to the books.
See how
Honest limits
What SimpleERP does not do yet
- Income tax withholding is not computed from government tables; you set the deduction per employee
- Social security, pension and end-of-service amounts are components you set, not statutory calculations
- No biometric device integration: attendance is marked on the phone or entered by HR
- Tax withheld from fees you pay subcontracting freelancers is not computed either
- No payroll tax returns; payroll gives you the figures to file
Getting started
Start with payroll
Sign up with your email
Name, email and a password. No card for the seven-day trial.
Tell us about the business
Pick your country and, if you are registered, type your tax number. Accounts, tax rates, units, roles and numbering are seeded for that country.
Add your people
Add each employee with their joining date and work email, set a salary structure with basic pay and deductions, and invite them to self-service.
Run the first payroll
Attendance and leave feed the run; payslips post to the books and staff see them on their phones.
FAQ
Questions, answered
Is it worth setting up payroll for one employee?
If you pay a monthly salary, yes. A proper payslip helps the employee with a rental application or a loan, and the salary posts to your books as a cost of the practice instead of looking like a personal transfer.
Do I need to register as an employer with one employee?
In most countries, yes, before the first payday, so the tax you withhold can be paid over. Rules differ, so confirm with your accountant before you hire.
Can my employee see their own payslips but not my invoices?
Yes. Give them the Employee self-service role. They see their attendance, leave and payslips on the phone, and nothing about clients, invoices or the P&L.
An intern gets a fixed stipend. Does that go through payroll?
It can. Add the intern as an employee with a one-line salary structure for the stipend, so the payment is on record with a payslip. Ask your accountant whether any deduction applies.
Related
Keep reading
Freelancers and consultants
Tax invoices, advances and milestones, tax withheld by clients and expenses for one-person practices.
Read moreAccounting for freelancers
A ledger that keeps itself from your invoices and expenses, tax withheld by clients as a receivable, and a P&L your accountant can read.
Read moreInventory for freelancers
Most freelancers can skip stock. For the few who sell workshop kits, printed workbooks or merchandise, a count per shelf at average cost.
Read more
See how payroll works in SimpleERP for freelancers and consultants
Seven days free. No card. Your first invoice in minutes.