> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://guide.garde.app/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Payroll setup & onboarding

> One focused afternoon per legal entity — guided or imported from your old provider.

**Who:** the owner, with your payroll admin.
**When:** once per legal entity.

Garde Payroll lives in the same platform as your labor and accounting data — guided setup, automated tax calculations and filings, human support when you want it. (How it works under the hood: [Payroll via CheckHQ](/platform/payroll-checkhq).)

## Set up

<img src="https://mintcdn.com/garde-590480cc/rtyu7WQ0XbwWvnlj/images/screenshots/payroll-onboarding.jpg?fit=max&auto=format&n=rtyu7WQ0XbwWvnlj&q=85&s=09c107bbc54752ee1f6dfd6cee33131c" alt="Payroll onboarding: Start Fresh or Import from Previous Provider" width="1568" height="737" data-path="images/screenshots/payroll-onboarding.jpg" />

1. Go to **Payroll → Onboarding** and select the location.
2. Choose your path:
   * **Start Fresh** — guided setup from scratch.
   * **Import from Previous Provider** — finish entity setup, authorize secure access to your old provider, and review what Garde imports.
3. Confirm the **legal entity**: legal name, **state tax withholding** mode, **authorized signer**.
4. Repeat per location until you see *All locations set up!*

<Warning>
  **Multiple locations on one legal entity** needs assisted setup — contact support *before* you start.
</Warning>

## After onboarding

Finish the **Getting Started** checklist on **Payroll → Home**, then wire the connections:

* **Employees / Contractors** — profiles, earning rates, withholding, benefits, PTO, documents, paystubs.
* **Departments**, **Payroll Employee Mappings**, **Job Mappings** — connect POS jobs to payroll so hours flow automatically.
* **Accounting Mapping** — payroll journals to the right accounts.
* **PTO Policy** — accrual rules.