Payroll Deductions

Documentation Index

Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.pluvel.com/llms.txt

Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

An employee’s gross pay is never what they take home. Between taxes (which you can’t avoid) and deductions (which are often voluntary), a $5,000 paycheck might become$3,200 by the time it hits their bank account. Deductions cover benefits, retirement contributions, garnishments, and anything else that comes out of their pay before or after taxes.

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Deduction types

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Pre-tax deductions

These come out before taxes are calculated — meaning they reduce taxable income. Employees pay less in taxes when they use pre-tax benefits.

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Post-tax deductions

These come out after taxes are calculated — the employee has already paid income tax on this money.

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Setting up deductions

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Company-level setup

First, create the deduction types your company offers:

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Employee-level assignment

Each employee opts into (or is assigned) specific deductions:

1. Open the employee’s profile
2. Go to Deductions
3. Click Add Deduction
4. Select the type and enter their specific amount
5. Save

Different employees can have different amounts — one might contribute 6% to 401(k), another might contribute 10%.

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Calculation methods

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Percentage example

Employee contributes 6% to 401(k):

• Gross pay this period: $5,000
• 401(k) deduction: $300

Next period the gross might be different (overtime, bonus), and the deduction adjusts automatically.

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Annual limits

The IRS caps certain deductions: Pluvel tracks year-to-date totals and automatically stops deductions when an employee hits the limit. No action needed from you.

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Employer contributions

Many benefits include an employer contribution: Set up employer portions in the deduction settings. They appear on the payroll summary as employer cost — not deducted from the employee.

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Garnishments

You just received a court order requiring you to withhold money from an employee’s paycheck. This isn’t optional.

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Garnishment priority

When an employee has multiple garnishments, federal law dictates the order:

1. Child support — always first
2. Tax levies — IRS and state tax
3. Other creditors — credit cards, judgments, etc.

And there are limits on how much total can be garnished (typically 25-50% of disposable income).

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Effective dates

Deductions can be scheduled:

• Start date — When the deduction begins (new hire, open enrollment)
• End date — When it stops (employee leaves plan, garnishment satisfied)
• Change effective date — When an amount change takes effect

Set these in advance. During open enrollment, you might set new rates to start January 1 even though it’s November.

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Reports

Track what’s being deducted: