# Timesheet corrections before a payroll switch | SourceX

Canonical: https://refer.sourcex.si/guides/workflow-timesheet-correction-approvals
Last updated: 2026-10-19

Before a payroll platform transition, inventory the records that show how timesheet corrections were approved and settled: the worker's original submission, the client's approval in the VMS, the payroll run that paid it, the revised timesheet or credit and debit memo, and the adjusted invoice. Note years covered, which system holds each, who owns it, and when access to the old payroll platform ends. Then introduce the payroll operations head.

## What timesheet correction approvals are, and why the history matters

A timesheet correction approval is the decision to change hours, dates or pay codes after a worker has submitted them, usually after the client has already approved them and sometimes after payroll has run. Each correction touches three parties: the worker who submitted, the client who approved, and the staffing firm that pays the worker and bills the client.

That is why the history is worth more than the timesheets themselves. U.S. wage-hour rules require employers to record hours worked each workday and total hours each workweek, with a workweek defined as a fixed, regularly recurring period of seven consecutive 24-hour workdays. A correction often moves hours between days or weeks rather than adding or removing them, and that move changes overtime, pay and the client invoice at once. The decision, the approver and the reason are the record of judgment. A payroll transition is the moment that decision trail is most likely to be split from the totals it explains.

## Which records to inventory, and where they live

Each record class, where it lives, the coverage, the owner and what to watch at cutover. The firm answers these questions; the partner writes down the answers, never the records.

| Record class | Lives in | Ask about coverage | Owner | Watch at cutover |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Worker submissions and approvals | Client VMS programs | Years visible to the firm per client | Billing, per client terms | Firm's access ends when a client program ends |
| Revised timesheets and memos | Client VMS programs | Whether memos reference the original timesheet | Billing | Memos exported as totals without references |
| Payroll registers and adjustments | Old payroll platform | Years held; whether adjustments carry reason codes | Payroll | Only summary balances migrated, not adjustment lines |
| Workweek and cutoff settings | Payroll setup; client program guides | Changes by year | Payroll, client services | Settings not documented anywhere |
| Invoices and credits | Accounting | Link from each credit to a timesheet | Finance | Credits netted into later invoices |
| Correction reasons and evidence | Email, supervisor notes | Whether a reason exists per correction | Branch leadership | Mailboxes of departed staff deleted |

The memo row deserves a direct question. SAP's support notes for Fieldglass treat a timesheet that was approved but not yet invoiced differently from one already invoiced: once invoiced, a supplier fixes it through a revised timesheet and a credit and debit memo rather than editing the original. A firm that kept those memos, each pointing back to its original, has a dated trail of every late correction. A firm that settled corrections with a manual line on next month's invoice may have only the net effect.

## Setting the real deadline

The deadline is not the new platform's go-live. It is the last date the old platform stays readable, and the date its vendor stops returning data. Both come from the old contract and its data-return terms, confirmed by the firm.

**Illustrative** transition schedule for a fictional 140-person light-industrial staffing firm. Dates are invented to show the sequence, not taken from a real contract.

| Point in the transition | What happens | What it means for correction history |
|---|---|---|
| Month 0 | Inventory starts | Record classes, years and owners listed |
| Month 3 | New payroll platform goes live | Open employees and balances move; adjustment lines may not |
| Month 6 | Old platform turns read-only | History can be viewed, not corrected or re-run |
| Month 9 | Data-return window closes | Anything not returned or kept under policy is gone |

Client VMS access runs on its own clock. When a client ends a program or moves to a new managed service provider, the firm's view of past submissions and approvals can end with it, regardless of the payroll schedule. Ask which large client programs have changed in the last few years and whether that history is still visible.

## Obligations are not options

Separate what the firm must keep from what it may choose to keep. Under the federal rules summarized in the Department of Labor's Fact Sheet #21, covered employers keep payroll records for at least three years and the records wage computations are based on, such as time cards and work time schedules, for two. That is a duty the transition must respect. It is not a reason to keep anything else, and it does not decide licensing.

So the partner's role is narrow. Do not recommend keeping data without the authority to keep it, do not collect samples, and do not ask for exports. The inventory is a description that lets the payroll operations head and the firm's leadership decide. For the scheduling side of the same staffing problem, see [workforce schedule exceptions](/guides/workflow-workforce-schedule-exceptions). Firms worried about identifying workers in small placements can read about [re-identification risk in small workforces](/questions/re-identification-risk-small-workforce).

## Does the firm qualify?

The introduced company needs 50+ full-time employees at peak with contractors excluded; a staffing firm's placed associates on assignment do not count, only its own full-time staff. It also needs a documented operating history, rights to license the records, and an authorized contact. Companies in the U.S., Canada and the EU qualify, as do companies in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, India, Singapore, South Africa, Latin America, the UAE and Saudi Arabia when at least 90% of the data is in English.

Partners sign the Channel Partner Agreement before submitting introductions; the first valid introduction within the 90-day window is credited when the company submits a verified application. Keep discovery at metadata level and never handle timesheets, registers or invoices. What stays unknown until SourceX reviews it: buyer interest in this record type, the rights review outcome on client VMS data, the de-identification needed, and whether an offer follows. Other staffing record types are on the [staffing and recruiting page](/industries/staffing-and-recruiting) and the [industries hub](/industries).

## Go deeper on timesheet correction approvals

- [Timesheet correction approvals records across systems](/guides/timesheet-correction-approvals-records-across-systems): a map of the IDs that join VMS, payroll and accounting records.
- [Who can license timesheet correction approvals records](/questions/who-can-license-timesheet-correction-approvals-records): a short answer on which leader to introduce.
- [Timesheet correction approvals referral brief template](/resources/timesheet-correction-approvals-referral-brief-template): a fill-in brief for the introduction itself.

## Next step

> **Refer a company. Earn up to $100,000.** Default reward: 25% of Actual Supplier Payout, capped at $100,000 cumulatively per referred company. Eligibility and payment conditions apply, and a signed Schedule A or addendum can differ. A lead, meeting or signature alone does not trigger payment.

If the payroll inventory shows years of corrections that still link from timesheet to memo to adjustment, and the old platform has a read-only date in its contract, [register as a partner](/register), check the firm against [who qualifies](/who-qualifies), and read the [program terms](/terms) before you send the payroll operations head your note.

## Sources

- https://refer.sourcex.si/terms
- https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-29/subtitle-B/chapter-V/subchapter-A/part-516/subpart-A/section-516.2
- https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/fact-sheets/21-flsa-recordkeeping
- https://userapps.support.sap.com/sap/support/knowledge/en/3010213
- https://userapps.support.sap.com/sap/support/knowledge/en/3065127