By the PayAdvisors team · Reviewed by Bryan Dacanay, Director of Payroll Operations
Your Payroll Person Quit: What to Do in the First 48 Hours
Secure every account payroll touches, find your next pay date and tax deposit deadline, and line up cover for the next two pay runs.
A team of payroll professionals can step in with your next pay run.
Your payroll person gave notice, or stopped coming in, and payday is on the calendar. What you do in the next 48 hours shapes the next pay run.
The first hour: secure access
Before anything else, make sure the company controls every account payroll touches.
- Payroll system: confirm at least two admin users, then change or remove the departing person’s access.
- Tax payment accounts: confirm who can log in to the accounts used for federal and state tax deposits.
- State accounts: list each state where you withhold or pay unemployment tax, with its account number.
- Bank and direct deposit: confirm who can approve payroll funding and the direct deposit file.
- Pending changes: collect new hires, terminations, raises and deduction changes that were in progress.
Find the next deadlines
Start with the payroll calendar: the next pay date and the date payroll must be submitted for direct deposit.
Then find your federal tax deposit schedule. Under IRS Publication 15 it generally depends on your past tax liability, not on how often you pay employees.
- Monthly schedule: $50,000 or less of employment taxes in the lookback period. Deposit each month’s taxes by the 15th of the following month.
- Semiweekly schedule: more than $50,000. Wednesday to Friday paydays deposit by the following Wednesday; Saturday to Tuesday paydays by the following Friday.
- Next-day rule: $100,000 or more accumulated on any day is due by the next business day.
Federal deposits are made electronically, through EFTPS, IRS Direct Pay or your IRS business tax account. State withholding and unemployment deadlines vary by state.
Cover the next two pay runs
Plan for two pay runs, not one. The first is urgent. The second is where gaps show up, because corrections and questions from the first land on it.
Someone on staff covers
This works if they know the system and have the time. Have a second person review every run before it is submitted.
You hire a replacement
Recruiting and training take time, so you still need cover for the pay runs in between.
A payroll team takes over
An outside payroll team runs the next pay run inside your system.
If payday is close
Our team can step in with your next pay run, check it before it goes out and stay on as your payroll department.
A team of 25+ payroll and HR professionals.
Call 866-839-3322 See emergency payroll supportWhat usually lives only in one person’s head
Ask for these before the last day, or rebuild them from the payroll records:
Garnishments: each order, the amount and where the payment goes
Off-cycle runs and corrections: what was fixed by hand, and why
Workarounds: steps done outside the system to make a report or deduction come out right
State registrations: every state account, its number and its filing schedule
Benefit deductions: which carrier or plan each deduction pays, and when
Year-end items: open W-2 or 1099 corrections and anything owed to an agency
Questions after a payroll person quits
What should I do first when my payroll person quits?
Secure admin access to your payroll system, tax accounts and bank approvals. Then find your next pay date and your next tax deposit deadline.
When is the next federal tax deposit due?
It depends on your deposit schedule. Monthly depositors deposit by the 15th of the following month; semiweekly depositors deposit within days of each payday (IRS Publication 15).
Can an outside team run payroll in our current system?
Yes. PayAdvisors runs payroll inside the system you already use, so nothing has to move.
Do we have to hire a replacement?
Not to keep payroll running. A payroll team can stay on as your payroll department, so you decide about the role on your own timeline.
Can you start before onboarding is finished?
Yes. If payroll cannot wait, we run your next pay run while onboarding continues.
Is there a contract or minimum term?
No. There is no minimum term. Service is month to month.
How long does onboarding take?
Onboarding runs in phases. Weeks 1 to 2 are onboarding and training. Weeks 3 to 4 are payroll takeover and your first live payroll with us. From week 5, we move into ongoing payroll optimization.
Related
Read the emergency payroll run checklist See payroll processing Read: should the controller, CFO or owner run payroll?
Talk to a payroll team about your next pay run
Last reviewed October 2, 2026. General information, not tax or legal advice for your situation.
Next step
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