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Icepay Payroll System

FAQ

 Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) have been compiled based on the support issues that have come through to us formally. This part of our support helps the customers with similar questions get directly answers independently reducing dependency on our support staff and empowering the customer.

Feel free to suggest some of the issues you have faced that may assist another customer with similar problems and we will include your suggestion to the FAQ page.

 

 

 

 

 

 

1. My system does not have financial periods for the current year. What do I do?

This happens when you have not added the current year's financial year and periods. Follow the instructions below:
a) Go to Settings on the main Menu
b) Select Financial Periods
c) Click on Add button to add the financial year
d) Click on the year added to select the record then click on Generate Periods to add financial periods for the year added
e) Ensure you add tax tables for the current year by clicking on the Tax Tables. You can inherit the tax data from a previous year if the rates remain the same

f) For leave management module, you also need to enter the Holiday days for the added year. Like tax tables, this can also be inherited from the previous year.

Note that as from 1 January 2017, PAYE rates will be as follows:

Monthly Taxable Pay (Ksh)Annual Taxable Pay (Ksh)Rate of Tax (%)
Up to 11,180 Up to 134,164 10
11,181 - 21,714 134,165 - 260,567 15
21,715 - 32,248 260,568 - 386,970 20
32,249 - 42,781 386,971 - 513,373 25
Above 42,781 Above 513,373 30

Personal relief will also change to Ksh. 1,280 from 1,162 per month.

2. I have started using the system mid way in the year. How do I move the processing to the current month?

The system generates financial periods based on the year it was installed or the year setting under central settings. This allows you to process prior periods through the system and keep track of the payments for reporting purposes. If you don't want this, you can mark the periods as posted under Financial periods listings in Settings. NB: This process is irreversible and care should be taken when applying this option.

3. I have processed the payroll and noticed some data had been captured wrongly. How can I correct this?

The system allows you to process the payments, review the reports and when comfortable, post the data. Posting means you have closed the payments for the month and cannot be undone. Before posting, one can rollback the processing, make data changes and reprocess. This is done through System->Monthly processing menu.

4. I have several staff working on payroll for data entry and I want to restrict some screens from them. How can I achieve this?

One of the key strengths of Icepay is support for multiple users on different machines over the network. To control what the users do, the system has a very flexible rights module which maps all the menu items into rights that can be denied or assigned. To do this, go to security, groups and select the specific group that you need to edit access for, or create a new group and assign the necessary rights. Ensure the users are then assigned to the group with the rights they need to perform their duties by changing the user group under security, users.

5. We have a SACCO that handles our staff loans deductions shares contributions. How do we handle the deductions using Icepay and remit this to the SACCO?

There are two ways to handling loans: You can create them as deductions, especially where the SACCO provides a fixed schedule to be deducted over a specific period of time. eg. The loan deduction is 12,000 per month for 48 months. The system will simply deduct this and keep track of the balance until the entire amount is paid, or SACCO directs you to stop the deductions. The other option is to add this as a loan, provided by the SACCO, which allows you to monitor the balance accurately. The system is able to deduct the loan on reducing balance interest and charge insurance if applicable, and reflect all the components (principal, interest and insurance) accurately on the remittance report.

Shares are simply handled as deductions of type contribution, which allows you to track the current contributions as they grow and reflect the same on the payslip.

6. When creating deductions, I noticed there is a deduction type - Deduction and Contribution. What is the difference between the two?

Deductions allow you to take some money from the employee's pay. Icepay allows for balance tracking on the deductions, which mean that the system will show you the outstanding balance after each processing period on the payroll. The balance is computed differently when handling deductions and contributions based on the Balance Brought Forward when creating the deduction. Contributions' balance keep increasing while deductions' balance keep reducing with each processing.

eg. Balance BF = 20,000 as at Jan 1, deduction per month = 5,000. After processing the pay at the end of Jan, Balance Carried Forward for a deduction would be 20,000 - 5,000 = 15,000, while for a contribution the same balance will be computed as 20,000 + 5,000 = 25,000.

For balances to be tracked on the payslip, one must set the Track Balance parameter on under the deduction settings.

7.Is there a demo version? Icepay payroll is available to download

Please see more details under Our Downloads

8.What are the new NHIF rates and how do you handle them in Icepay?

The National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) Regulations, Legal Notice 2015, stipulating the revised NHIF contribution came to effect on 1st April 2015. The Legal Notice provides that individual contributions to NHIF shall be as shown in the schedule below based on Gross Pay:

 

From  To NHIF
          Min         5,999.00      150.00
      6,000.00     7,999.00      300.00
      8,000.00   11,999.00      400.00
    12,000.00   14,999.00      500.00
    15,000.00   19,999.00      600.00
    20,000.00   24,999.00      750.00
    25,000.00   29,999.00      850.00
    30,000.00   34,999.00      900.00
    35,000.00   39,999.00      950.00
    40,000.00   44,999.00   1,000.00
    45,000.00   49,999.00   1,100.00
    50,000.00   59,999.00   1,200.00
    60,000.00   69,999.00   1,300.00
    70,000.00   79,999.00   1,400.00
    80,000.00   89,999.00   1,500.00
    90,000.00   99,999.00   1,600.00
  100,000.00      Max     1,700.00

9.What are the new NSSF rates and how do you handle them in Icepay?

The new NSSF rates were signed into law in Dec 2013 and came to effect in Jan 2014. NSSF was considerate enough to allow companies time to adjust and prepare for the new deductions, with the changeover happening from 31st May 2014.

 These rates have not been effected though, but Icepay is ready for them.

COMPUTATION GUIDELINES:

 

For the purposes of the Act, the Upper Earning Limit (UEL) will be KES. 18,000 while the Lower Earnings Limit (LEL) will be KES 6,000.

The pension contribution will be 12% of the pensionable wages made up of two equal portions of 6% from the employee and 6% from the employer subject to an upper limit of KES 2,160 for employees earning above KES 18,000.

The employee contribution shall be drawn directly from his salary and wages while the employers contribution shall come directly from the employer.

The contributions relating to the earnings below the LEL of the earnings (a maximum of KES. 720) will be credited to what will be known as a Tier I account while the balance of the contribution for earnings between the LEL and the UEL (up to a maximum of KES 1,440) will be credited to what will be known as a Tier II account.

Luckily, Icepay will handle all these complexities and present to you accurate figures ready for remittance to NSSF. This will be released from 1st June when the changes take effect in the market.