Sage HR Essentials - Frequently Asked Questions

What Sage HR Essentials?

Sage HR Essentials is a version of Sage HR that comes free as part of Sage Payroll. 

It provides Sage Payroll users with basic functions such as:

• Employee profile management
• Time off management
• Employee self-service tools

 NOTE: Once you upgrade to add Sage HR modules, it is no longer Sage HR Essentials, but simply Sage HR integrated with Sage Payroll. 

For more details read our guide, What is Sage HR Essentials?

Is it free?

There is no extra cost to using Sage HR Essentials when you already have a Sage Payroll subscription.

Do I have to use it?

It is not compulsory to use. Sage HR Essentials is there if you ever want to provide a self-service portal for your employees.

Employees can access:

• Payslips
• Documents
• Annual leave

You can even choose which employees you want to use it.

For example: email payslips to some employees, but use Sage HR Essentials for others.

How do I start using it?

This depends on whether you've already activated Sage HR Essentials from within Payroll. For more information on how to get started, visit our Set up Sage HR Essentials support hub.

Can leavers access their payslips?

After you end an employee record in Sage HR Essentials, they can no longer log into your Sage HR company. As part of your leaving procedure tell the employee to download their payslips. They must do this before their leave date. After this date, you can still email them their payslips via Sage Payroll.

Can I merge HR Essentials with my other existing Sage HR company?

If you already have a standalone Sage HR company, this will still exist as a separate company. Any user with an email address in both Sage HR companies has the option to select the company name. This switches between their associated companies. 

If your other company doesn't appear, an admin user should contact Sage HR support. Request a company link so that you can switch between these companies.

Can I remove the time off functionality?

If you don't need the time off functionality of Sage HR Essentials, for example, you already have another Sage HR company with Leave Management, you can't remove it from settings. However, as long you don't assign any employee to a time off policy, they won't see anything relating to time off in your Sage HR Essentials company. Only an admin will be aware of its existence.

 TIP: The one default time off policy, rename it as 'DO NOT USE' and use its description to explain to other users not to create other policies or assign any employees to a policy in this Sage HR Essentials company. 

Is there a mobile app?

Yes, there is. Employees can log in to the Sage HR mobile app on their phone.

They can access:

• Payslips
• Documents
• Time off requests

Is 2-Factor Authentication (2FA) available?

Yes it is. You can enable 2FA from within your Sage HR Essentials settings. When enabled, the system prompts the employee to set up their authentication. This happens the next time they log in.

How do I add Sage HR modules?

 You do this from within Manage business account. This is the same place you would manage your Sage Payroll subscription. For more information, view our guide, Subscribe to Sage HR modules.

Who do I contact for support?

For Sage HR Essentials support, select Help within your Sage HR Company. You can either search for your query in our Sage HR knowledgebase or click on the chat icon on the bottom right. This starts a conversation with Sage HR support.

 NOTE: The Sage HR support team will let you know if you need to contact Sage Payroll support instead for your query. 

Is there support for employees?

We do have guides and support hub for employees. If they can't find the answer they need from our online self-serve support, they need to contact you. An admin user can contact Sage support on their behalf.