Warnings and Errors in Payroll

Troubleshoot warnings and errors you may find while reviewing payroll.

What are Warnings and Errors?
Troubleshooting
- Error Messages
- Warning Messages

What are Warnings and Errors?

As humans, sometimes we make mistakes! The Warnings and Errors section of the Submit page alerts you to any potential issues before you submit your payroll.

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Troubleshooting

These tables provide a course of action for potential Warning and Error messages displayed during payroll Review. Each table is sorted alphabetically by Code, then alphabetically by Message.

Note: Payroll cannot be submitted until all Errors are corrected. While Warnings can be bypassed/accepted, we strongly advise reviewing all Warning messages and taking corrective action where needed.

If you encounter a Warning or Error not on this list and need assistance or more information, please contact Checkwriters Client Support at Support@checkwriters.com.

Error Messages

Code	Error Message	Locate this issue	Corrective action
Employee	ACTIVE Employee has NO Base Rate	HR Admin → Manage Employees → Employee Center → Select Edit for the appropriate employee → Payroll tab → Rate tab	Select New Base Rate. Fill in the fields appropriately. Select Save.
Employee	Employee Base Rate is missing a START DATE	HR Admin → Manage Employees → Employee Center → Select Edit for the appropriate employee → Payroll tab → Rate tab	Select Edit for the appropriate active Base Rate. Enter a valid start date in the Start Date field.
Employee	Employee is W2 but missing FITW	HR Admin → Manage Employees → Employee Center → Select Edit for the appropriate employee → Payroll tab → Tax tab	Select Add New. Use the Tax Code drop-down menu to select FITW - Federal Income Tax. Follow the employee’s W4 to fill out the remaining fields.
Employee	Gender Missing	HR Admin → Manage Employees → Employee Center → Select Edit for the appropriate employee → Information tab → Demographics tab	Use the Gender (for compliance purposes) drop-down to select the appropriate gender.
Employee	Hire Date Missing	HR Admin → Manage Employees → Employee Center → Select Edit for the appropriate employee → Information tab → Status tab	In the Employee Information section, enter the employee’s hire date in the Hire Date field.
Employee	SOC code is needed per state reporting requirements. Enter SOC code in EE Demographics.	HR Admin → Manage Employees → Employee Center → Select Edit for the appropriate employee → Information tab → Demographics tab	In the Additional Info section, enter the appropriate Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) code for the employee. Not sure which code to use? Find the SOC code on US Bureau of Labor Statistics website.
Employee	SSN Missing/Invalid	HR Admin → Manage Employees → Employee Center → Select Edit for the appropriate employee → Information tab → Demographics tab	For security purposes, Checkwriters must handle any issues with Social Security Numbers (SSN). Please contact Client Support at Support@checkwriters.com for assistance.
Payroll	Employee Direct Deposit TRANSIT# is incorrect	HR Admin → Manage Employees → Employee Center → Select Edit for the appropriate employee → Payroll tab → Direct Deposit tab	Select Edit for the appropriate Direct Deposit. Verify with your employee that the transit/routing number is correct. If the number is correct according to your employee, please contact Client Support at Support@checkwriters.com for assistance.
Payroll	Payroll cannot be submitted past your scheduled check date.		Please contact Checkwriters Client Support at Support@checkwriters.com for assistance.
Payroll	Pay Type is Blank	Payroll → Select Payroll Entry (Open) → Select the appropriate batch → Use the employee drop-down menu to select the appropriate employee	Use the Pay Type drop-down menu to select the appropriate Pay Type. The standard Pay Type is Regular.
Tax	EE Tax ERROR: Check contains multiple lines with the same tax code	Payroll → Select Payroll Entry (Open) → Select the appropriate batch → Use the employee drop-down menu to select the appropriate employee	For a regular batch: Locate the lines with the same tax code. If applicable, consolidate the information into one of the lines. Delete the extra line using the Delete button. For a VM batch: Please contact Checkwriters Client Support at Support@checkwriters.com for assistance.

Warning Messages

Code	Warning Message	Locate this issue	What to check
Employee	Birth Date Missing	HR Admin → Manage Employees → Employee Center → Select Edit for the appropriate employee → Payroll tab → Rate tab	Enter the employee’s date of birth in the Birth Date field. Select save.
Employee	Direct Deposit Bank Account Add - New.	HR Admin → Manage Employees → Employee Center → Select Edit for the appropriate employee → Payroll tab → Rate tab	Verify that the direct deposit change is legitimate. Verify the account number with your employee.
Employee	Direct Deposit Bank Account has been changed.	HR Admin → Manage Employees → Employee Center → Select Edit for the appropriate employee → Payroll tab → Rate tab	Verify that the direct deposit change is legitimate. Verify the account number with your employee.
Employee	Direct Deposit Transit Number has been Add - New	HR Admin → Manage Employees → Employee Center → Select Edit for the appropriate employee → Payroll tab → Rate tab	Verify that the direct deposit change is legitimate. Verify the routing/transit number with your employee.
Employee	Direct Deposit Transit Number has been changed	HR Admin → Manage Employees → Employee Center → Select Edit for the appropriate employee → Payroll tab → Rate tab	Verify that the direct deposit change is legitimate. Verify the routing/transit number with your employee.
Employee	Employee does not have all of the MAPFML taxes assigned to them	HR Admin → Manage Employees → Employee Center → Select Edit for the appropriate employee → Payroll tab → Rate tab	Check to see which of the following MAPFML taxes your employee is missing: MAFLI-EE, MAFLI-ER, MAPML-EE, MAPML-ER Select Add New. Use the Tax Code drop-down to select the missing tax code. Refer to (form) to fill out the remaining fields. Repeat for all missing MAPFML tax codes.
Employee	Employee is missing (MED) entry	HR Admin → Manage Employees → Employee Center → Select Edit for the appropriate employee → Payroll tab → Rate tab	Select Add New. Use the Tax Code drop-down to select MED - Medicare. Select N/A for Filing Status. Select Save.
Employee	Employee is missing (MED43) entry	HR Admin → Manage Employees → Employee Center → Select Edit for the appropriate employee → Payroll tab → Rate tab	Select Add New. Use the Tax Code drop-down to select MED43 - Medicare (943). Select N/A for Filing Status. Select Save.
Employee	Employee is missing (MED-R,MED43-R,MEDVI-R) entry	HR Admin → Manage Employees → Employee Center → Select Edit for the appropriate employee → Payroll tab → Rate tab	These “-R” codes denote an employer tax. Select Add New. Use the Tax Code drop-down to select the appropriate tax code. Select N/A for Filing Status. Select Save.
Employee	Employee is missing (SS) entry	HR Admin → Manage Employees → Employee Center → Select Edit for the appropriate employee → Payroll tab → Rate tab	Select Add New. Use the Tax Code drop-down to select SS - OASDI. Refer to FICA Federal tax to fill out the remaining fields.
Employee	Employee is missing (SS43) entry	HR Admin → Manage Employees → Employee Center → Select Edit for the appropriate employee → Payroll tab → Rate tab	Select Add New. Use the Tax Code drop-down to select SS-R - OASDI - Employer. Select N/A for Filing Status. Select Save.
Employee	Employee is missing (SS-R,SS43-R,SSVI-R) entry	HR Admin → Manage Employees → Employee Center → Select Edit for the appropriate employee → Payroll tab → Rate tab	These “-R” codes denote an employer tax. Select Add New. Use the Tax Code drop-down to select the appropriate tax code. Select N/A for Filing Status. Select Save.
Employee	Employee is missing FUTA entry	HR Admin → Manage Employees → Employee Center → Select Edit for the appropriate employee → Payroll tab → Rate tab	Select Add New. Use the Tax Code drop-down to select FUTA - Fed Unemployment.
Employee	Employee is missing SITW entry	HR Admin → Manage Employees → Employee Center → Select Edit for the appropriate employee → Payroll tab → Rate tab	Select Add New. Use the Tax Code drop-down to select the correct state SITW tax code. Refer to the employee’s state tax form to fill out the remaining fields.
Payroll	Employee being paid at a rate of $400 or more per hour	HR Admin → Manage Employees → Employee Center → Select Edit for the appropriate employee → Payroll tab → Rate tab	Verify that the rate is correct. Change rate if incorrect.
Payroll	Employee hours greater than 99	Payroll → Select Payroll Entry (Open) → Select the appropriate batch → Use the employee drop-down menu to select the appropriate employee	Verify that the number of hours is correct. Change the number of hours if incorrect.
Payroll	Inactive Employee is being Paid	Payroll → Select Payroll Entry (Open) → Select the appropriate batch → Use the employee drop-down menu to select the appropriate employee	Verify that the pay is correct. If it is not correct, delete the check for that employee.
Payroll	The Check Date you are about to Submit is for a Date that has already Passed		Please contact Checkwriters Client Support at Support@checkwriters.com for assistance.
Payroll	There are pending time off requests waiting approval for the current pay period	HR Admin → Time Off Center → Time Off Calendar → Request Tab → Select Edit for the appropriate employee	Approve or deny the request. If you approve the request, you will have to go back into the batch and manually enter the appropriate/applicable hours.