LedgerLoom Chapter 13 — Payroll as a multi-line event

This chapter shows how to take a payroll register export (a CSV from a payroll provider) and translate it into deterministic multi-line journal entries.

What you build

• A tiny import pipeline for payroll_register.csv

• A deterministic pay-run-to-entry generator that posts:

  • Gross wages to expense

  • Employee withholdings to payroll liabilities (control accounts)

  • Employer payroll taxes to expense + liabilities

  • Net pay as a payable that is then paid in cash

• Statutory remittances (pay the withholdings + employer contributions)

• A control reconciliation:

  payroll register totals → G/L control account balances

How to run

make ll-ch13

Artifacts

The Chapter 13 runner writes outputs/ledgerloom/ch13 containing:

• payroll_register.csv — the sample input register (CSV)

• payroll_runs_summary.csv — pay-run totals (gross, deductions, net, employer taxes)

• payroll_remittances.csv — remittance schedule and payments posted in-period

• postings_payroll.csv — postings generated by payroll runs, payments, and remittances

• payroll_control_reconciliation.csv — subledger vs G/L reconciliation for key balances

• Standard LedgerLoom artifacts: postings, trial balance, statements, invariants, manifest

Notes and limitations

This is a teaching implementation:

• The numbers are illustrative (not jurisdiction-accurate tax logic)

• No accrual across periods (the demo posts each pay run on its pay date)

• Remittances are modeled as a single cash payment that clears liabilities

The point is to show a clean, testable pipeline from payroll exports to ledger postings and control checks.