Fill in the staff import file
Know what to type in each column of the staff import template, so your whole team comes in ready for payroll.
Updated Oct 3, 2026
Before you start
Go to Staff, click Import CSV, then click Download Template. Open it in Excel or Google Sheets and delete the four example rows.
- Keep the header row as it is. Timekeep finds each column by its name, so a renamed header is not imported.
- Only First Name, Last Name and Salary Type must stay. You can delete any other column you do not need.
- Check Hire Date carefully. It cannot be changed after the import.
- One file can hold up to 1,000 employees.
Steps
- Fill in one row for each employee, using the tables below.
- Save the file as CSV. In Excel, choose Save As and pick CSV UTF-8. In Google Sheets, choose Download and pick Comma-separated values.
- Go back to Import CSV and drag the file onto the upload box.
Name and job
| Column | What to type | If you leave it blank |
|---|---|---|
| First Name | The person's first name | The row shows Error |
| Last Name | The person's last name | The row shows Error |
| Their email address | Left empty | |
| Employee Number | Your own unique number, such as EMP-001 | Timekeep makes one |
| Position | The job title, such as Cashier | Left empty |
| Branch | The branch name, such as Cebu | Left empty |
| Employment Status | probationary or regular | probationary |
| Hire Date | The day the person started, such as 2024-03-01 | Left empty |
A position or branch Timekeep does not have yet is added for you. Capitals do not matter, so "cebu" goes to your existing Cebu branch.
Hire Date matters for pay and leave. Payroll leaves the person out of any payroll run that ends before it, and days before it never count as absences. Their monthly leave credits start from that month.
Pay
Pick a Salary Type, then fill in the rate columns it needs. Leave the other rate columns blank. A blank Salary Type means daily.
| Salary Type | How the person is paid | Fill in |
|---|---|---|
| daily | For each day worked | Daily Rate |
| hourly | For each hour worked | Hourly Rate |
| fixed | The same salary every cutoff, called Fixed Semi-Monthly | Semi-Monthly Rate |
| monthly | A monthly salary, with absences and late minutes deducted | Semi-Monthly Rate and Daily Rate |
A cutoff is the half of the month a payroll run covers. Semi-Monthly Rate takes the whole month's salary, not half, so ₱30,000 pays ₱15,000 per cutoff. Type amounts without the peso sign. Commas are fine, such as 15,000.00.
Pay Frequency is semi-monthly, which is twice a month, or weekly. A blank cell means semi-monthly. Weekly is for daily and hourly staff only.
Government IDs and deductions
| Column | What to type | If you leave it blank |
|---|---|---|
| SSS Number, PhilHealth Number, Pag-IBIG Number, TIN | The number as printed, with dashes | Left empty |
| Deduct SSS, Deduct PhilHealth, Deduct Pag-IBIG, Deduct Tax | yes or no | yes |
| Fixed SSS Employee Share, Fixed SSS Employer Share | A monthly amount, such as 1,125 | Uses the latest SSS table |
| Fixed PhilHealth Employee Share | A monthly amount, such as 500 | Uses the latest PhilHealth rate |
| Fixed Pag-IBIG Employee Share | A monthly amount, such as 200 | Uses the latest Pag-IBIG rate |
Leave the fixed shares blank for most employees. Timekeep then uses the latest official schedules:
- SSS: the contribution table that took effect in January 2025.
- PhilHealth: the 5% premium, shared equally by you and the employee.
- Pag-IBIG: the current rates, with the ₱10,000 maximum Fund Salary.
- Withholding tax: the BIR table in effect since January 2023.
Fill in a fixed share only when you have agreed a set amount with the employee. It needs that contribution's Deduct column set to yes. For yes or no, Timekeep also accepts y and n, true and false, or 1 and 0.
Settings that are not in the file
Holiday pay, night differential (extra pay for work between 10pm and 6am), clock-in settings and the contribution schedule start the same as for an employee you add by hand. Change them on the employee's page if needed.
What happens next
A preview marks each row Valid, Error or Duplicate before anything is saved. Hover over a badge to read why. A column Timekeep does not recognise is listed under Ignored columns, so check its spelling.
The import adds the valid rows and gives each new employee a kiosk PIN. Fix any rows with an error in your spreadsheet and upload the file again. Employees already in Timekeep are never changed.
Common problems
- My government IDs look wrong, such as 1.23457E+11. Excel treated them as amounts. Set those columns to Text, type the numbers again, and save.
- The Hire Date shows an error. Your spreadsheet probably changed it to 3/1/2024. Set the column to Text, type 2024-03-01, and save again.
- A row says a fixed share needs the deduction set to yes. That contribution is turned off for the person. Set its Deduct column to yes, or clear the amount.
- A row says the rate is required. The rate for that salary type is empty, or its column was deleted. Copy the column back from a fresh template.
- A row says Duplicate. Someone with the same name and email is already in Timekeep, or appears twice in your file. The row is skipped, so nothing you already have changes.