PayCanvas collects only the sources and pay inputs approved for the payroll account. These can include booking and reservation data, time and attendance records, point-of-sale data, tips, commissions, and approved reports. Some accounts may also offer a specific report for recovery or historical data.
Prerequisites
- An open payroll period.
- Active, configured provider connections or an explicitly enabled report workflow.
- Files for the exact selected period when a report import is offered.
- Authorization for the offered source action. Payroll operators can start supported, confirmed collection through MCP; report and recovery controls may have additional dashboard restrictions.
Monitor connected sources
- Open the run and select Collect sources or Uploads.
- Review each provider card:
- A booking or reservation system can supply bookings, services, locations, participants, crew assignments, add-ons, and gratuities.
- A point-of-sale or payment system can supply eligible sales and tip records.
- A time and attendance system can supply timecards and reported wages.
- Review progress, missing data, conflicts, failures, and the last successful update. A partial or failed collection is not complete merely because some rows arrived.
- Use only the retry, continue, cancel, or recovery action offered for the current job state.
- Wait for every required source to show ready before calculating.
Provider credentials stay on the server and are used only by the configured collection workflow. They are not placed in the browser or shown in source diagnostics.
Import a report when the workspace offers it
- Confirm the selected period and the report type requested on screen.
- Select the unmodified source file for that exact period.
- Upload the file and review the returned validation result.
- Follow the offered continuation step only after PayCanvas accepts the report, then wait for source readiness.
Historical decision imports are separate: manual adjustments use CSV and saved resolutions use JSON. PayCanvas standardizes those records and keeps a technical fingerprint for verification. The raw saved-resolution file is discarded after import.
Current limitation: Report upload is not available for every account. It is a specifically enabled workflow, not a general spreadsheet uploader. Internal comparison or diagnostic import controls are not a supported replacement for your account's configured source; ask support before using a historical or recovery file.
Expected result
The run shows a locked, version-consistent source snapshot with completion details, or a specific message explaining what is still missing.
How normalization works
Different sources may use different names, identifiers, formats, and levels of detail for the same person, service, location, or amount. PayCanvas maps those inputs into the consistent concepts expected by the Canvas. The original evidence remains referenced, while the engine receives a stable structure it can evaluate reliably.
Normalization does not create a new pay rule or guess what a missing value means. If an input cannot be mapped safely, PayCanvas shows a blocker or review item instead of silently changing the data.
Troubleshooting
- Upload control is missing or disabled: report upload is not enabled for this account, deployment, run state, or source profile.
- Wrong file type: return to the requested source card and use the exact file format shown there.
- Validation fails: do not edit out rows to force acceptance. Preserve the original file and share the sanitized error code with support.
- A connected source is incomplete: use the offered continuation or retry. An empty partial response is not necessarily proof that collection is complete.
- Employee-mapping version conflict: use the offered saved-data recovery path. It keeps the earlier result and avoids repeating completed provider calls.