Migrating to SmoothPay from another payroll system requires careful planning and data transfer to ensure continuity and accuracy.
Before you begin
Timing
The best time to migrate is at the start of a pay period or financial year to minimise complexity.
Data preparation
Gather the following information from your current system:
Complete employee records.
Current leave balances.
Year-to-date pay history.
Tax information.
Superannuation or retirement scheme details.
Any outstanding payments or deductions.
Backup
Maintain access to your old system after migration for reference and audit purposes.
Migration process
The migration process typically involves these steps.
Step 1: Set up company and system settings
Before importing employee data, configure your SmoothPay system:
Company details and registration numbers.
Pay codes (work, leave, allowances).
Deduction codes.
Cost centres.
Superfunds and agencies.
Many of these settings are pre-configured based on your jurisdiction, but you may need to add custom codes specific to your organisation.
Step 2: Import employee records
Set up each employee's record in SmoothPay. This includes:
Personal details.
Contract settings.
Bank accounts.
Tax information.
Superannuation or retirement scheme details.
For detailed instructions on each of these areas, refer to the individual setup articles.
For large organisations, contact SmoothPay support about bulk import options.
Step 3: Migrate pay history
Depending on your jurisdiction, you may need to enter year-to-date pay history manually or import it.
Refer to the Migrating employee pay history article for detailed instructions.
Ensure all year-to-date totals reconcile with your previous system before processing your first pay.
Step 4: Migrate leave balances
Transfer current leave balances for each employee.
Refer to the Adjusting leave balances article for detailed instructions on setting up leave balances correctly.
Step 5: Set up recurring deductions
Configure any ongoing deductions from employee wages.
Refer to the Setting up recurring deductions article for instructions.
Step 6: Process a test pay run
Before processing your first live pay:
Create a draft pay for all employees.
Review all pay calculations carefully.
Compare results with your previous system.
Do not finalise this test pay. Instead, clear it and repeat testing until you're confident all data is correct.
Step 7: Process your first live pay
When you're ready to process your first live pay:
Follow the standard pay process outlined in the "Pay process guide".
Take extra care reviewing all reports.
Verify all outputs match your expectations.
Keep detailed notes of any issues for future reference.
Step 8: Reconciliation
After processing your first few pay runs:
Reconcile all year-to-date totals with your previous system.
Verify leave balances are tracking correctly.
Check tax reporting aligns with previous submissions.
Ensure superannuation or retirement schemes are calculating correctly.
Review accounting outputs.
Common migration issues and solutions
Leave balances don't match
Check that leave settings match your old system.
Verify anniversary dates are correct.
Ensure accrual methods are configured correctly
Tax calculations differ
Confirm tax codes and scales are correct.
Check for any special tax circumstances.
Verify year-to-date totals were entered correctly.
Superannuation amounts don't match
Check contribution rates.
Verify superfund details.
Ensure year-to-date contributions are correct.
Need help?
If you encounter difficulties during migration, contact SmoothPay support. We can provide:
Guidance on complex migration scenarios
Assistance with bulk data imports
Help reconciling differences between systems
Training on SmoothPay features and functionality