AccountantsWorld — Payroll Relief

From the September 2009 Review of Professional
Payroll Programs

AccountantsWorld’s
Payroll Relief is a web-based live payroll system designed for professional
accountants offering payroll services to multiple clients. The system supports
any number of clients with unlimited employees and includes direct deposit,
e-filing of tax forms and electronic remittance of liabilities. Because it is
web-based, the system can be securely accessed from any location, and Payroll
Relief includes firm-branded client portals for entry of time and employee data.
The system is available in a version that allows unlimited clients and payroll
runs with filing and direct deposit included for $997. Two per-use options are
also available. For firms with lower payroll volume, the Per Payroll Run option
costs $5.95 for weekly payrolls of up to 10 employees and $9.95 for other payroll
frequencies. The Per Paycheck option is designed for high-volume firms, with
pricing based on total paychecks processed ranging from $0.50 to $1.25 per check
based on volume. AccountantsWorld also offers a web-based suite of other accounting
products, including write-up, sales tax compliance, practice management, financial
planning and document management.

DATA ENTRY & KEY FEATURES:
Users access Payroll Relief via a login console on their own website, which
allows staff to easily open and work with their AccountantsWorld programs. Once
logged into the firm staff section, a customizable screen offers access to the
programs, along with features that make it usable as an intranet, providing
firm messages and news, as well as access to company email and website management
functions (if using Website Relief). The payroll system opens within a new window
called the Payroll Management Center, which acts as the hub for payroll tasks.
It provides a clean interface that offers a filterable, sortable and searchable
client list and client details such as next pay date, processing date, payroll
status, and tax and reporting deadlines. This great client selection list provides
excellent overview of all clients from a single location. Likewise, employee
lists allow filtering by location, department, employee type and other factors.

When working within a client, the program’s Activity Center offers a
workflow view of all client payroll management functions, from setup to processing,
printing and compliance reporting. Data entry is performed on intuitive screens,
with a multi-employee spreadsheet grid greatly speeding the process of entering
time, rate, accruals usage and other information. The system includes diagnostic
tools that alert users to errors, omissions or other details, such as past due
direct deposits or reporting. As well, a new calendar tool displays all the
due dates for each client.

Data can also be imported from spreadsheets or, if the firm wishes to allow
it, clients can be given the ability to log in through a client-specific web
portal and enter their data themselves. Clients can also be given the ability
to print paychecks from their own office locations, after the runs have been
processed by the firm. All client login screens can be branded with the firm’s
information so that the relationship remains between the firm and the client.
Payroll Relief also offers an employee portal, which can be set up to allow
client employees to view historical paystubs and make requests.

The system allows unlimited pre- and post-tax deductions and can manage third-party
payments such as workers’ compensation, 401K and payroll debit cards.
It supports workers with multiple state taxation and allows up to six pay rates
per employee, with support for all types of compensated workers. Payroll Relief
also supports departmental labor tracking.

REPORTING CAPABILITIES:
Payroll Relief automatically tracks compliance due dates and alerts users to
pending deadlines, making it easier to stay on top of varying state rules. The
system offers quarterly and annual forms for all states, D.C. and Puerto Rico,
along with electronic reporting and payment capabilities. AccountantsWorld has
also expanded the program’s analytical features, providing firms with
better monitoring features, such as the Changes report and Payroll Statistics.
The system also offers a good collection of customizable reports, including
wages, deductions, payroll summaries, liabilities, benefits, workers’
comp and others, all of which can be emailed directly from the program or saved
into PDF, Word or Excel format.

INTEGRATION/IMPORT & EXPORT:
Payroll Relief directly integrates with other web-based AccountantsWorld programs
and offers a spreadsheet import option that makes it capable of acquiring data
from most time clock systems and many other programs. The system can also export
data into common formats for use with other accounting packages.

RELATIVE VALUE:
Payroll Relief provides several pricing methods that make the system affordable
to virtually any firm. The web-based system is wonderfully simple to use and
provides great automation features that help ensure accuracy and timeliness,
while also speeding processing tasks. It makes full use of its online nature
by offering direct deposit, e-filing and electronic payment functions. The employer
and employee portals further add to client value.

2009 Overall Rating:

Payroll