Payroll

Payroll built for your first U.S. hire — and every hire after.

Orbiss helps international employers set up, run, review, and scale U.S. payroll across federal and state requirements, from registration to recurring compliance.

Talk to a Payroll Advisor

U.S. Payroll Setup & Registration

EIN coordination, payroll system setup, state tax IDs, unemployment accounts, workers’ compensation, and payroll configuration.

Recurring Payroll Management

Support for payroll processing, wage reporting, deductions, employer taxes, filings, and employee payroll records.

PEO Advisory & Transition Support

Evaluate, join, exit, or transition from PEO arrangements with payroll, benefits, and compliance implications mapped clearly.

Payroll Compliance Reviews

Review state registrations, tax rates, worker classification, filing history, pay frequency, mandatory trainings, and payroll setup before issues compound.

WHY IT MATTERS

Hiring in the U.S. starts a compliance clock.

International employers often underestimate how quickly a first U.S. hire creates payroll obligations. Federal withholding is only one part of the process — state registrations, unemployment accounts, workers’ compensation, pay frequency, and classification rules can all vary by location.

Orbiss helps companies build payroll correctly from the start, then keep it aligned as the team expands across states.

Federal and state payroll tax filings required annually for most employers

7.65%

Employer-side Social Security and Medicare tax rate before wage-base limits

Weekly hours after which non-exempt overtime rules generally apply

States with payroll, withholding, unemployment, or labor-law considerations

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

U.S. payroll works differently than most international employers expect. From tax IDs to multi-state filings, the details matter.

Hiring a U.S. employee generally requires a federal Employer Identification Number, payroll setup, employee onboarding forms, federal withholding, state payroll registration where required, state unemployment accounts, workers’ compensation coverage, and payroll system configuration.
The exact process depends on where the employee works, whether the company already has a U.S. entity, and whether payroll is handled directly, through a PEO, or through another employer arrangement.
Standard U.S. employees often receive offer letters rather than long-form employment contracts. These letters typically outline job title, start date, salary, benefits eligibility, and at-will employment language.
Formal employment agreements are more common for executives or employees with complex compensation, equity, confidentiality, restrictive covenant, or severance arrangements.
At-will employment generally means either the employer or employee can end the employment relationship at any time, for any lawful reason, unless a contract or specific law provides otherwise.
It does not mean employers can ignore documentation, anti-discrimination rules, retaliation protections, wage laws, or state-specific requirements. U.S. terminations still need careful handling.
Sometimes, but classification must reflect the actual working relationship. If the company controls the worker’s schedule, tools, duties, and integration into the business, the worker may be treated as an employee even if the contract says “contractor.”
Misclassification can create payroll tax exposure, wage claims, benefits issues, workers’ compensation problems, and penalties.
Non-exempt employees are generally entitled to overtime pay when they work more than 40 hours in a workweek. Exempt employees are excluded from overtime rules only if they meet both salary and duties tests.
Correct classification depends on what the employee actually does, not just title or salary.
It depends on state law and employee classification. Some states allow monthly payroll for certain employees, while others require semi-monthly, biweekly, weekly, or other pay frequencies.
International employers should not assume their home-country payroll rhythm can be copied into the U.S.
Many employers file Form 941 quarterly to report federal income tax withholding and Social Security and Medicare taxes. Employers may also need Form 940 for federal unemployment tax, state withholding returns, state unemployment returns, W-2 forms, and local filings depending on the employee locations.
A PEO can be useful for early U.S. hiring because it may combine payroll, benefits, workers’ compensation, and HR administration. But it is not always the right long-term model.
Companies should evaluate cost, benefits quality, reporting, control, employee experience, compliance support, and exit flexibility before choosing or renewing a PEO.