FAQ
Payroll FAQ
1) How do I get my PIN number to access Employee Self-Service? If you are a student employee, the Registrar's office will issue you a PIN number. That PIN number will allow you to access your employee information.
If you are not a student, Human Resources will be distributing PIN numbers on a regular basis through internal mail to your home department. If you require a PIN number and have not received one, please contact us at hr@smu.ca and we will respond on an individual basis.
If you have your employee number and PIN number and are experiencing problems accessing Employee Self Service, contact the Help Desk at 8111 or helpdesk@smu.ca.
2) When do I get paid? All employees are paid on a bi-weekly basis, with payday falling on every second Thursday, as outlined on our .
3) Can I get paid by cheque instead of direct deposit? No, direct deposit is mandatory at ¶¶ÒõÊÓƵ. Deposits can only be made to Canadian bank accounts in Canadian dollars.
4) If I am already working for ¶¶ÒõÊÓƵ do I need to complete all sections on the form? You always have to provide at least your name and Social Insurance Number. If you have not moved or changed your bank information, it is not necessary to complete this section again.
5) If I work for two different departments, can I get my pays deposited into different bank accounts? We only deposit to one bank account. If you provide us with different bank accounts on different forms we will take the information from the most recent form.
6) Why do you need your student number? We are trying to keep our database as up to date and accurate as possible. Although we can not access your student information, things such as address changes and emergency contact information found in the student system is reflected in our records. Providing student number will help us identify you in our database and ensure that there are no duplicate records.
7) How do I change my payroll information? You can print a copy of the Casual Employee Action Form and return it to Payroll Services. Please note that if you update your address through student, it will be changed in our system.
8) Do I need to fill out tax forms for every job? If you are a new employee and you do not fill out tax forms, we will only take your basic tax credit into account when calculating your pay. If you are not a new employee, your tax information will carry forward each year until you provide us with new forms. If you do not keep your tax information up to date you could end up being under or over taxed at income tax time.
9) I work for Aramark or SMUSA. Do I need to give you my payroll information? If you work for Aramark or SMUSA you are not considered an employee of ¶¶ÒõÊÓƵ. They have their own payroll records that Payroll Services does not have access to.
10) When will I get my T4? We are required by law to send you your T4 and/or T4A by February 28th. The T4 and/or T4A's will be distributed to your department. If the T4 and/or T4A's are not picked up they will be mailed to your permanent mailing address. Please check Employee Self-Service and verify that your mailing address is correct before January 1. Failure to maintain a current mailing address will result in a delay in receiving your T4 and/or T4A.
11) How do I get a duplicate T4 and/or T4A? You can access a duplicate copy of your T4 and/or T4A at anytime by logging into Employee Self-Service.
12) I need a letter confirming employment or earnings. How do I request it? Salaried employees: 
You will need to make your request in writing. Fill out the Human Resources Letter Request Form [PDF] ‌ and fax, email, or drop off to Human Resources. The request will be processed within 5 business days.
Casual employees: 
You will need to make your request in writing. Fill out the Payroll Services Letter Request Form [PDF] and fax, email, or drop off to Payroll Services. The request will be processed within 5 business days.
13) I need to change where my pay is deposited. How do I do that? Contact Payroll Services BEFORE closing your old account. You will have to have your new information submitted to Payroll by the dates indicated in the Cut-Off Schedule, using the Employee Action Form [WORD DOC] ‌. If you close your account before we can process the change, your deposit will be rejected by your financial institution and your pay will be delayed. The rejected deposit has to be returned to SMU before we can reissue the payment to you. If your payment is not rejected by the bank we CAN NOT reverse the deposit. You will have to deal with your financial institution directly.
14) If payday falls on a holiday, or the university is closed on payday, when will my pay be deposited? If payday falls on a banking holiday, the deposit will be made to your account the business day preceding the holiday i.e., if the holiday is a Thursday, your pay will be deposited on a Wednesday.
If payday falls on a university holiday but the banks are open, then payday will not be impacted. Your pay will be automatically deposited on the normal payday.