Pay Basics

Pay Basics is the best starting section for readers who want to understand what a Canadian paycheque is showing before they dig into deductions, remittances, or year-end reporting.

Start Here

• Gross Pay explains the full earnings total before deductions.
• Net Pay explains the amount the employee actually receives.
• Pay Period explains the time window the payroll is paying for.
• Pay Date explains when the payment is actually issued.
• Pay Frequency explains how often payroll normally runs and pays employees.
• Biweekly Pay explains the every-two-weeks pay schedule many readers confuse with semi-monthly pay.
• Semi-Monthly Pay explains the fixed twice-a-month pay pattern.
• Monthly Pay explains once-a-month payroll timing.
• Weekly Pay explains a one-week payroll cycle.

Questions This Section Answers

• What does pay before deductions actually mean?
• Why is take-home pay lower than the gross amount?
• Which days belong inside one payroll period?
• When does payroll issue the payment?
• What is the difference between biweekly pay and semi-monthly pay?

Continue To

• Pay Statement & Pay Run for the records and steps behind a payroll run.
• Earnings & Compensation for salary, wages, and compensation language behind payroll.
• Statutory Deductions for the mandatory deductions that turn gross pay into net pay.

In this section

• Biweekly Pay
  Every-two-weeks payroll schedule that differs from semi-monthly timing and can create three-pay months.
• Gross Pay
  Employee pay before deductions, used as the starting point for payroll calculations and many pay-stub questions.
• Monthly Pay
  Once-a-month payroll schedule that concentrates earnings and deductions into a single monthly run.
• Net Pay
  Take-home pay after deductions and withholdings, shown as the amount the employee actually receives.
• Pay Date
  Day payroll releases payment, distinct from the period the employee was paid for.
• Pay Frequency
  Recurring payroll schedule such as weekly, biweekly, semi-monthly, or monthly, which shapes pay periods and pay dates.
• Pay Period
  Span of time a payroll run covers before the pay date and pay-stub totals are finalized.
• Semi-Monthly Pay
  Twice-a-month payroll schedule tied to fixed calendar dates rather than a rolling 14-day cycle.
• Weekly Pay
  Every-week payroll schedule often used for faster time-to-pay and shorter earning periods.