Trace an unexpected amount from the selected run context through included employees, transaction inputs, time-off values, currency requirements, and the backend preview. Do not replace a calculated statutory line with a manual estimate.

What this means

The preparation screen distinguishes draft estimates from authoritative backend results. The selected schedule occurrence, employee set, compensation rate units, and statutory effective date must be checked before treating a total as valid. This target diagnostic flow is pending implementation.

Common causes

  • The wrong organisation, schedule occurrence, employee assignment, statutory effective date, or payroll type is selected.
  • Salary, hourly, or contract rate units, period hours, proration, or approved time do not match the source terms.
  • An employee inclusion checkbox, regular hours, overtime, additional earnings, reimbursement, leave, or payment type is wrong.
  • A once-off input is duplicated by a recurring employee transaction or entered against the wrong definition.
  • The custom transaction version, entry policy, currency, percentage basis, units, or rate is not the intended one.
  • A required exchange rate is missing, stale, or does not match active pack policy.
  • The active statutory pack or employee statutory facts changed the calculated statutory deductions.

How to fix it

  1. Save the draft and record the organisation, schedule, period, close-by date, statutory effective date, run ID, and currency.
  2. In Step 1, compare inclusion, hours, additional earnings, reimbursements, notes, payment type, and employee transaction rows with the approved source.
  3. Check the employee’s recurring inputs and this run’s “Add transaction” entries for duplicate or missing values.
  4. Check Transactions for the definition’s status, effective date, value model, and entry policy. Use the controlled catalogue action for pack-owned items.
  5. Check the run’s retained pack identity on Review payroll. For new work, check the date-scoped default in Workspace Settings > Statutory Packs; use Compliance for Rules and detached Tax Preview. Repair exchange-rate or readiness blockers shown in the wizard.
  6. Select “Preview payroll” again and compare the backend totals and employee rows. Use Review payroll for frozen evidence after a run exists.

What to check before continuing

The new preview must be current and successful. Check gross, employee deductions, employer costs, net pay, employee PAYE/AIDS levy/NSSA, and transaction inputs. No displayed amount proves a debit or payment occurred. Retain the source and note for an intentional change.

How to prevent it

Use the preparation checklist, keep recurring assignments and custom versions effective-dated, and preview after every material input change. Review the statutory pack identity and output evidence before finalising.

Still stuck

Do not finalise while the source of the difference is unresolved. Capture the exact total, currency, run ID, period, preview state, and relevant validation message. Share only approved evidence with support because local payroll data remains in the desktop workspace.

Related guidePayroll preparation checklistRelated guideReview payrollRelated guidePayroll transactions