Create and Approve Timesheets

Timesheets in Xero allow staff to record their hours online, managers to approve them, and payroll admins to include approved hours in the pay run — all without manual calculation.

Employee and Manager Workflow

Staff create and submit timesheets through the employee portal. Managers can log in and approve submitted timesheets for their team.

Payroll Administrator View

Go to Payroll and select Timesheets. The overview shows all timesheets and their current status:

• Draft — not yet submitted
• Pending approval — submitted by the employee, awaiting manager approval
• Approved — ready to be included in a pay run

Follow up with employees or managers for any outstanding timesheets. As the payroll admin, you also have the option to approve timesheets directly.

Create a Timesheet on Behalf of an Employee

1. Click Add timesheet.
2. Select the employee and the pay period.
3. Add the earnings rate and a tracking category if applicable.
4. Enter the hours for each day of the week. If the pay period spans more than a week, scroll across to see additional days.
5. Add extra lines for different earnings rates if needed.
6. Click Save to keep it as a draft, or click Approve to mark it as ready.

Save as a Template

If an employee's timesheet is similar each pay period, click Save as template. Next time you create a timesheet for them, you'll have the option to load a saved template — pre-filling hours and rates automatically.

Timesheets in the Pay Run

Once all timesheets are created and approved for the pay period, they'll be included automatically in the appropriate pay run.