Use the Payroll window to create a payroll, including its calendar and valid payment methods.

   To create a new Biweekly payroll:

1. Set your effective date to a date early enough to handle any historical information you want to enter. Your effective date must be on or before the first period start date of the payroll calendar. Set the start date for the first day of the first pay period (Pay Period 01).

2. Enter the payroll's name and select Biweekly type from the list.

3. Enter the end date of the payroll's first period, and the number of years for which the system should initially generate the payroll's calendar. You can increase this number later to generate additional years.

   When you enter the First Period End Date, make sure that the corresponding start date of the first period is after the start date of the payroll.

4. In the Date Offset region, you can change the zero default to a negative or positive number of days before or after the period end date. For example, for a semi-monthly payroll, the Cut Off date can be 3 days before the period end date (-3), while the Scheduled Run and Check dates can be 5 and 7 days after this date, respectively.

   • The Check Date, sometimes called Pay Date, is the date of constructive receipt of pay, on which paychecks become negotiable.

   • The Scheduled Run Date is the date scheduled for the Regular run of this payroll each period.

   • The Cut Off date, included for your reference, is the final date for entering or changing payroll information before a run.

   These offsets are the defaults for the calendar. You can manually make date changes in the calendar, for example when an offset date falls on a weekend or holiday, by choosing the Period Dates button.

5. Select a default payment method for employees who have no valid personal payment method. You cannot select a method using magnetic tape because this requires information about employees' bank accounts.

6. Select a default consolidation set for this payroll. One consolidation set is created automatically when you define your Business Group. Oracle Payroll users can create other consolidation sets for payroll processing.

7. In the Costing region, you can enter information about the set of books and suspense account holding costing information for this payroll.

   The information you enter here depends on the setup of your Cost Allocation key flexfield.

8. Save your work.

9. Choose the Period Dates button to view the calendar generated for your payroll. In the Period Dates window:

   • You can view the default offset dates for every period, and you can manually override any of these dates in any record.

   • You can change the payroll's default Open status in any period to Closed to prevent further element entries. You can also reopen the period if necessary.

   Attention: Use this feature with caution. When you perform certain important tasks in Oracle HRMS, the system may automatically create or delete element entries. You cannot change any element entries that span a closed payroll period, and so you may be prevented from performing these tasks.

10. Choose the Valid Payment Methods button to add valid payment methods for this payroll.

    In the Valid Payment Methods window, the default payment method for the payroll appears automatically. You can add other methods. First set your effective date to the date you want the method to become valid.

    Note: An employee assigned to this payroll can have any number of personal payment methods chosen from those you enter here for the payroll.