Element Templates

You use an element template to create an element, based on the element's purpose, and the primary classification to which the element belongs.

The exact scope of each element template, including the questions displayed on the Elements page, is controlled by a number of factors, such as, the country extension and payroll license status of the user.

Here's a list of the primary classifications supported by the global payroll element templates:

Note: The element classification name and calculation rules may vary by country because they are based on the legislation rules. For example, the Days * Rate calculation rule is not applicable for the US legislation. For more information, see the Implementing Payroll guide for the respective country.

Primary Classification	Description	Category	Calculation Rules Supported
Absences	Use for elements that calculate absence payments and deductions for an employee. You must select this option for absences managed in Oracle Absences or a third-party absence product.	Absence	You can select the unit of measure for Absence reporting: Hours Days
Balance Initialization	Use to load initial balance values. You would mainly use these elements when transferring balances from a legacy payroll application as part of your payroll implementation.	Standard	NA
Direct Payments	Use for payments that are made directly to employees, and aren't subject to payroll taxation, such as expense reimbursements.	Standard	Flat Amount Factor Percentage of Earnings Days * Rate Hours * Rate
Direct Payments	Use for payments that are made directly to employees, and aren't subject to payroll taxation, such as expense reimbursements. You must select this option for direct payments captured on a timecard in Oracle Time and Labor or a third-party time product.	Timecard	You can select the unit of measure for time reporting: Hours Other Units Days
Employee Tax Credits	Use to capture excess tax amounts that should be deducted as part of payroll processing.	Standard	Fixed amount deduction Percentage deduction
Employer Charges	Use to calculate taxes that are paid by employers in accordance with their employees’ gross wages and compensation.	Standard	Fixed amount deduction Percentage deduction
Employer Taxes	Use to calculate taxes that are paid by employers in accordance with their employees’ gross wages and compensation.	Standard	Fixed amount deduction Percentage deduction
Information	Use to capture information that is required for the calculation of other elements or formulas. For example, this type of element may capture details to cost the hours worked to a different natural account from the regular earnings account.	Standard	NA
Involuntary Deductions	An example of an involuntary deduction is a court ordered payment taken from the employee's pay and paid to a court or an individual person.	Involuntary Deduction	NA
Pre-Statutory Deductions	Pretax deductions are deductions made from a person's gross income. They reduce the total taxable income of the person and the tax withheld.	Standard	Fixed amount deduction Percentage deduction
Severance Pay	Severance is a type of discretionary payment that can be made to an employee when their employment is terminated.	Standard	Flat Amount Factor Days * Rate Hours * Rate
Standard Earnings	Use for the payment of regular earnings, such as salary.	Standard	Flat Amount Factor Percentage of earnings Days * Rate Hours * Rate
Standard Earnings	Use for the payment of regular earnings, such as salary. Select this option for standard time captured on a timecard in Oracle Time and Labor or a third-party time product.	Timecard	You can select the unit of measure for time reporting: Hours Other Units Days
Supplemental Earnings	Use to define an augment payment to an employee, such as bonus, incentive.	Standard	Flat Amount Factor Percentage of earnings Days * Rate Hours * Rate
Supplemental Earnings	Use to define augment payment to an employee, such as bonus, incentive. Select this option for supplemental earnings captured on a timecard in Oracle Time and Labor or a third-party time product.	Timecard	You can select the unit of measure for time reporting: Hours Other Units Days
Tax Deductions	Use for legal tax deductions such as income tax, resident tax, and special tax. Many elements with this classification are predefined for your legislation.	Standard	NA
Taxable Benefits	Use for elements that aren't applied to a payment balance. The difference between earnings and taxable benefits is whether the elements are applied to a payment balance or not.	Standard	Flat Amount Factor Percentage of earnings Days * Rate Hours * Rate
Taxable Benefits	Use for elements that aren't applied to a payment balance. The difference between earnings and taxable benefits is whether the elements are applied to a payment balance or not. You must select this option for taxable benefits captured on a timecard in Oracle Time and Labor or a third-party time product.	Timecard	You can select the unit of measure for time reporting: Hours Other Units Days
Voluntary Deductions	Use these elements for deductions such as union dues, which the employee authorizes the employer to make voluntarily on the employee's behalf, after tax deductions.	Standard	Fixed amount deduction Percentage deduction

Element Category

The element category indicates whether the element is maintained using the standard element feature or the payroll calculation solution.

When you create an element, either a default value is selected in the Category field, based on the selected primary classification, or you can select a category from a list of values that are determined by the primary classification.

It's essential that you select the appropriate category for each of your elements. For example, you must select the Timecard category when you create an element that will be used to capture timecard information in Oracle Time and Labor or a third-party time product.

Note: The element category is now stored in the PAY_ELEMENT_TYPES_F table, instead of template internal tables, as part of the element creation from 23C onwards. The existing elements have been updated with the corresponding element category values used at the time of element creation.

Here's how you use the element categories:

Standard: The information required to calculate a standard element, such as number of hours, is captured through element input values. You can view the entry details for this element on the Standard Element Entries region of the Calculation Entries page for an employee.
Calculation Information: The information required to calculate this type of element, such as number of hours, is captured through value definitions within the calculation information repository. You can view the entry details for an employee on the Calculation Entries page. For example, absence entry details can be viewed on the Absence page and tax information can be displayed on the Tax page for the employee.

Here's a list of all element categories and the model used by each category:

Category	Element Model
Absence	Calculation Information
Involuntary Deduction	Calculation Information
Standard	Standard
Timecard	Calculation Information

Calculation Rules

Select the calculation appropriate for your element, to control which input values or value definitions are created for the element, the predefined formula associated with the element, and so on. For example, when you create an allowance element that's based on a percentage of earnings, select the Percentage calculation rule.

Here's a list of the calculation rules supported by the element template:

Name	Description
Days * Rate (including Days rule)	The element formula multiplies the number of absence days by the applicable rate. This rule is commonly used for absence payments that are paid based on the number of days an employee is absent.
Flat Amount	Select this option when the payment or deduction amount is entered for an employee. The element formula can convert the entered amount, based on the payroll frequency of the employee. For example, you can enter an annual allowance amount of $6,000 for an employee and the element will calculate $500 as payable in each monthly payroll period.
Factor	Select this option for earnings or deductions that are calculated based on a factor, using rates. For example, a company pays shift payments that are calculated as a factor of 0.05% of the employee's salary.
Hours * Rate (including Hours rule)	The element formula multiplies the number of hours entered for the employee by the applicable rate. This rule is commonly used for employees that are paid based on the number of hours submitted on a timecard.
Percentage of Earnings / Percentage of Deductions	Select this option for earnings or deductions that are calculated based on a percentage. For example, a company pays car allowance payments that are calculated as 5% of the employee's salary. This type of element creates a balance called <ELEMENT_NAME> Eligible Comp. The predefined element formula uses this balance for the percentage calculation. Add balance feeds to this balance to meet your business requirements. For example, apply the salary element to this balance when the percentage calculation is based on the salary of the employee.
Other Units	This option supports payment rates that are based on units such as mileage or piecework rates. The element formula multiplies the number of units entered for the employee by the applicable rate.