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Run payroll for contractors

Who is this article for?
  • Only account owners can run payroll.
  • Full-service Square Payroll subscribers.
  • About running payroll for contractors

    With Square Payroll, you can pay contractors on your schedule. The contractors can clock in and out from the Square Team app, and import their hours. They will be notified when they’re paid and can view their payment histories in their online accounts.

    If you use Square Shifts, you can automatically import your contractors’ commissions from your sales into your payroll run. Commission importing works alongside importing timecards, tip importing, and automatic payroll. Commission wages that are imported into your payroll runs also appear in your Square Payroll reports and your team member’s pay stubs.

    Before you begin

    To import commissions from your team’s Square Shifts timecards, you need to set up commission tracking. Learn how to setting up commission tracking.

    Contractors must have their personal information completed before they can be paid. You cannot pay your contractor until their personal information has been entered. You can either provide their email address so the contractor can enter in their personal information or you can manually provide this information yourself.

    You can run payroll from your Square Dashboard.

    Run payroll for contractors

    1. Sign in to your Square Dashboard and select Staff & Payroll > Payroll > Run payroll.

    2. Select Pay Contractors.

    3. Select your Pay Period dates. If you choose a pay period in a previous year, the payment will be included in the current year’s Form 1099-NEC.

    4. Choose your payment method: Use Default Payment Method or Pay All by Check. If you want to record a payment you already made or want to write checks for all contractors, choose Pay All by Check.

    5. Select your contractor(s) and enter their pay or hours worked. 

    6. If you are using Square Shifts timecards (or a supported third-party timecards application) and/or commission tracking, select Import time and wages to import your contractor’s hours and commissions for the pay period. Alternatively, you can manually enter commissions in the Amount column.

    7. Select Continue.

    8. Review the contractor payment details and select Submit Payment. Contractors paid by direct deposit will receive pay four business days after you send the payment.

    Delete a contractor payment

    If you paid your contractor manually with a check, you can correct and delete a historical contractor payment from your payroll history.

    Deleted payments don’t show up in your payroll history and will not be included in their Form 1099-NEC at the end of the year. To delete all other types of runs, or if you paid the contractors via direct deposit, contact Square Support.

    1. Select the pay period, find the payment you want to delete, and select Delete payment.

    2. From the Type drop-down menu, select Contractor Payment.

    3. Select the pay period, find the payment you want to delete, and select Delete payment.

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