Business owner preparation | Published 9 October 2026
Owner Payroll Review File: Duties, Hours and Source Records
Prepare a useful compensation conversation by documenting what the owner actually does. This worksheet organizes evidence; it does not calculate a defensible salary or endorse a standard percentage.
Describe the owner role
List revenue-producing work, management, hiring, finance and administrative responsibilities separately. Record approximate time by role and note seasonal changes. Explain which tasks the owner delegates and who performs them. A title such as president provides less useful information than a description of the work.
Reconcile the compensation record
Gather payroll registers, year-end wage statements, distributions and any compensation agreement. Reconcile the amounts with the general ledger and identify payments that have not yet been classified. Keep each entity separate so the reviewer can understand where services are performed and where payments originate.
Prepare comparison evidence
Save the date, geography, experience level and job duties behind any market compensation evidence. Ask the advisor which comparisons are relevant and which differences require adjustment. Preserve the source rather than copying a salary number without its context.
Define the implementation handoff
Record who approves the analysis, communicates payroll changes, updates the bookkeeping and checks the year-end reporting. If the business changes materially, ask when the compensation assessment should be revisited.
Printable preparation worksheet
Use a private working copy to record the document location, outstanding question and person responsible for completing each item. These blank fields do not submit or store information online. Keep sensitive data in your secure records.
| Record or question | Document location or missing item | Owner and follow-up date |
|---|---|---|
| Owner duties and approximate time | ________________ | ________________ |
| Payroll totals by entity and tax year | ________________ | ________________ |
| Distributions reconciled to the ledger | ________________ | ________________ |
| Market evidence with source and date | ________________ | ________________ |
| Named payroll and return-preparation contacts | ________________ | ________________ |
Before you request advice
Mark unresolved items clearly and explain any deadline that may affect the review. Ask for an individualized conclusion and a written work scope before relying on a recommendation. A completed preparation worksheet is evidence organization, not approval of a tax position.
Continue with the relevant AE service or guide
Review the related AE decision and next steps. Confirm the specific entities, tax years, deliverables and fees covered by your engagement.
Related preparation resources
- Business Tax Projection Preparation: A Quarterly Record Checklist
- Multi-Entity Tax Advisor Handoff: Ownership, Returns and Responsibilities
Published by AE Tax Advisors. General education and preparation support, not individual tax, legal or accounting advice. Illustrative material does not describe a real client outcome or guarantee a result.
Focused implementation guides
Resolve the related evidence question before carrying a planning assumption into implementation.
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