Bulk Importing and Exporting Payroll Deductions

Before making changes, we recommend exporting your current data to see what is already in the system. Note that this export only includes active employee deductions.

1. Go to Settings and select Payroll.
2. Select Export payroll data.
3. Choose Employee Deduction (Pay Run Inclusions).
4. Click the dropdown to download the file as either CSV or Excel.
   
   Note: This export only includes active employee deductions. Inactive or expired deductions will not be shown.

The import process follows five steps to ensure your data is mapped correctly to the payroll system:

1. Select your Data Type: 
   Navigate to Settings > Payroll > Import payroll data and select Employee Deduction (Pay Run Inclusions).
2. Download the Template: 
   Choose the "Blank Template" for new deductions or "With Existing Data" to update current active deductions.

3. Prepare your File:
   Fill out the spreadsheet. Ensure the following columns are handled correctly:

   Employee ID / Name: Required to identify the staff member.

   Deduction Category Name: Mandatory. This must match the name of the deduction category exactly as it appears in your Payroll settings (e.g., "RRSP" or "Monthly Union Fee").

   Deduction Category Type: Optional. Used for additional validation (e.g., "Union Dues").

   Record ID: the ID of the specific employee deduction record. Leave blank if this is a new deduction that you would like to add. You can find this Record ID next to each employee deduction in the employee records.
    

4. Upload and Map Columns: Upload your saved CSV or Excel file (up to 10MB). The system will automatically link your columns to payroll fields, but you should double-check them for accuracy. If any information is missing or incorrect, use the dropdown menus to select the right fields manually.

5. Review Results: 
   Once you click Import, a real-time progress bar will appear.

   Partial Success: If some rows have errors, the valid rows will still be imported.

   Error Report: If any rows fail (e.g., for a terminated employee or unrecognized category), you can view them on the "Review and complete" screen. 

   Re-importing: Simply fix the errors in your report and upload that file as a fresh import.
   
   

We do not recommend closing the page during the import process, as it may result in unexpected errors or partial data processing.

No. Rows containing terminated employees will be flagged as errors in your import report. The system only supports active employee deductions.

These options are exclusively visible to users of EH Payroll and currently only support Canadian organizations.

1. Check Your File

• Format: Make sure it is a .csv or .xlsx file.
• Size: It must be smaller than 10MB.
• Security: Ensure the file is not password-protected.

2. Check the "Must-Haves"

• Employee Information: Every row needs an Employee ID or Name.
• Deduction Names: This column must be filled in for every row.
  Note: The names must be an exact match to your settings (for example, "RRSP" is not the same as "RRSP Contribution").
• Active Staff Only: Delete any rows for employees who no longer work for you.
• Frequency: Make sure you've noted how often the deduction happens (e.g., every pay period). Possible values to be entered into the imported file are: 
  • Once
  • PerPayRun
  • FirstPayPeriodInMonth
  • LastPayPeriodInMonth

3. Check the Formatting

• Category Types: If you use this column, use the standard system labels like "Union Dues."
• Dates: Use the format YYYY-MM-DD (e.g., 2026-03-30).
• Numbers: Use plain numbers only. Do not include dollar signs ($).

4. Tips for Uploading

• Save Time: If you are just updating current info, use the "with existing data" template.
• Headers: If you changed the names of the column headings, you will need to manually link them to the right fields during the upload process.
   

For security, the platform session times out after 15 minutes of inactivity. Large files (20,000+ rows) can take up to one hour to process, which creates risks if the session idles:

• Partial Imports: The process stops mid-way, leaving records missing.
• Data Duplication: Re-uploading the same file to fix a partial import often creates duplicate entries.

To ensure a smooth upload, we recommend breaking data into smaller batches of 4,000 to 5,000 rows. This provides several benefits:

• Reliability: Files process well within the 15-minute activity window.
• Safety: Significantly reduces the risk of incomplete data sets.
• Validation: Formatting errors are much easier to identify and correct in smaller batches.

Always stay active on the platform or keep the import status page visible until you receive the "Import Successful" confirmation to keep your session live and the data flowing.