A payslip is produced for you each time payroll runs. It shows what you earned, what was taken off, and what reached your account.
The Three Numbers
Gross earnings - everything earned before anything is deducted. Your basic salary plus allowances, plus commission if you earn it.
Total deductions - everything taken off.
Net pay - what actually reaches you.
Earnings
Your basic salary is the fixed part, and it matters beyond its own line: several deductions are calculated as a percentage of basic rather than of the total, so it is the number those rules are anchored to.
Allowances appear as their own lines - housing, transport, whatever your organisation defines.
Commission appears as its own figure where you earn it.
Deductions
Each deduction is listed with its own line so nothing is a lump sum you cannot account for.
Leave deductions appear when unpaid leave was taken, with both the number of days and the amount.
Advance repayment appears if you have taken a salary advance, at the agreed monthly amount, until it is repaid. See Salary Advances.
Statutory deductions are the ones required by law in your jurisdiction. Some are paid by you, some by your employer, and the payslip distinguishes them - see below.
Employer Contributions
Your payslip also shows what your employer pays on top of your salary, and the total cost of employing you.
These are not deducted from you. They appear because they are part of what you are paid in total, and because in most jurisdictions you are entitled to see them. If a figure looks alarming, check whether it is a deduction or a contribution before worrying about it.
Year To Date
YTD gross and YTD tax show the running totals for the year, which is what you need for a tax return or a loan application.
If You Are Paid In Another Currency
Where your pay is in a different currency from the organisation's reporting currency, the payslip records the exchange rate used, so the converted figure can always be reconstructed.
Why Net Pay Changes Month To Month
The usual causes, in order of how often they explain it:
- Unpaid leave in the period.
- An advance repayment starting or finishing.
- Commission earned in one month and not the next.
- A statutory threshold crossed - some deductions only start above a salary level, or stop at an annual cap.
Common Questions
My net pay is lower than last month. Compare the deduction lines rather than the total. One of the four above will explain it.
A deduction looks wrong. Raise it with HR. Deductions come from a configured rule rather than being typed per person, so if one is wrong it is usually wrong for everyone on that rule.
When is payroll run? Your organisation sets a cut-off day each month. Anything after the cut-off falls into the next run.
Can I see previous payslips? Yes, they are kept.
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