Electronic payslips: the legal framework and Shyfter's role

If you wish, Shyfter lets you make payslips available to your employees in their app, securely. This is optional. It is convenient, but making payslips available this way does not, on its own, meet the legal obligations around the electronic delivery of payslips: these depend on the country and remain the employer's responsibility.

This article explains what Shyfter does, what it does not do, and the rules to follow in Belgium and France so that your paperless payslips are in order.

This article is general information, not legal advice. Regulations may change and depend on your situation: if in doubt, contact your social secretariat, your payroll provider or your adviser.

What Shyfter does

Shyfter is used to distribute and view the payslips produced by your social secretariat or your payroll software. Shyfter does not calculate pay and does not produce payslips.

In practice:

• You import the PDF with the month's payslips in Team → Payslips. Shyfter splits the file and suggests an assignment for each employee.
• Nothing is visible without your validation: a payslip only appears in the employee's space after you click Approve the payslip. This way you check every assignment before it is shared.
• The document is stored privately: it is only accessible to the employee concerned and to the authorised people on your account. By default, schedule and HR managers do not have access; the Can manage payslips option is granted case by case, in the manager's profile.
• Opening is protected by a code: in the Shyfter Staff app, payslips are secure files. To open one, the employee receives a 6-digit code by email, valid for 10 minutes. The number of attempts is limited to 5; a new code can be requested after one minute.
• Download links are temporary: they expire after a short time and cannot be shared permanently.

The detailed steps are in the articles on importing payslips and on Shyfter Drive.

What Shyfter is not

To avoid any misunderstanding with your employees, it is important to be clear about this:

• Shyfter is neither an electronic archiving service nor a digital vault within the meaning of the applicable regulations, whatever the country: it does not guarantee that payslips are kept for the periods required by law.
• Access depends on the employee's account: a deactivated or deleted employee can no longer log in to Shyfter, and a document removed by the employer is no longer visible.
• The copy in Shyfter is a viewing copy. The legal delivery of the payslip and its archiving must be handled through the channel intended for that purpose: your social secretariat, your payroll software or an archiving provider, or otherwise on paper.

In practice, Shyfter complements your payroll set-up: your employees easily find their payslips in the app, while the original is delivered and kept according to the legal rules.

An optional feature, under the employer's responsibility

Making payslips available in Shyfter is entirely optional. Nothing obliges you to use it: it is a convenience service that you choose to enable for your teams.

When you use it, you remain solely responsible:

• for the content of the documents you import and approve (accuracy, compliance of the payslip);
• for assigning them to the right employee, which you validate yourself before anything is shared;
• for complying with the legal obligations on delivery, information, employee consent or objection, and retention of payslips, in your country;
• for managing the access you grant to the managers on your account.

Shyfter provides the technical tool that makes this secure sharing possible. Shyfter is not involved in producing payslips, does not check their content and does not replace the employer for the legal delivery of payslips. Making a payslip available in Shyfter therefore does not, on its own, count as legal delivery of the payslip.

In Belgium: what the law says

In Belgium, the electronic sending and archiving of the pay statement (the payslip) are governed by the law of 3 June 2007 containing various provisions relating to work (title III, article 16). The key points:

• Agreement is required. Electronic sending must be agreed between the employer and the employee. Neither can impose it. For an employee who has not agreed, the payslip must be delivered on paper.
• Duration and return to paper. The agreement applies at least for the current calendar year. After that, either party can end it by notifying the other clearly and explicitly. Paper delivery then resumes on the first day of the second month following the notification.
• Electronic archiving. Documents sent electronically must be archived with an electronic archiving service provider that meets the legal requirements. This archiving is free of charge for the employee, who must have access to it at any time, and it covers at least five years after the end of the employment contract.
• Work regulations. The work regulations must state the identity of the electronic archiving provider and how the employee can access the archived documents.

In most cases, it is your social secretariat that offers compliant electronic sending and archiving. Shyfter comes on top of that, as a convenient viewing space for your teams.

In France: what the Labour Code says

In France, electronic delivery of the payslip is provided for by article L3243-2 of the Code du travail, and detailed by articles D3243-7, D3243-8 and R3243-9. The key points:

• Prior information of the employee. The employer informs the employee of their right to object to electronic delivery, one month before the first electronic payslip or at the time of hiring, by any means giving a certain date.
• Right to object at any time. The employee can refuse electronic delivery before or after the first electronic payslip, by any means giving a certain date. The return to paper takes effect as soon as possible, and at the latest three months after the notification.
• Long-term availability. The employer guarantees the availability of electronic payslips either for 50 years, or until the employee reaches the mandatory retirement age plus six years. The employee must be able to retrieve all their payslips at any time, easily and in a common format. If the service closes, users are informed at least three months in advance.
• Access through the personal activity account. Electronic payslips must be viewable from the online service linked to the compte personnel d'activité (CPA).
• Integrity and confidentiality. Delivery must take place under conditions that guarantee the integrity and confidentiality of the data.

These requirements are usually met by your payroll software or by a specialised digital vault. Shyfter does not replace them: it gives your employees simple and secure access to a copy of their payslips.

Your checklist

Before offering payslips in Shyfter, check that:

1. Legal delivery is organised: your social secretariat, your payroll software or an archiving provider handles compliant electronic delivery, or you hand over the payslip on paper.
2. Your employees are informed: written agreement in Belgium, prior information with a certain date in France, and a mention in the work regulations in Belgium.
3. Refusals are respected: an employee who refuses electronic delivery receives their payslip on paper, even if a copy remains viewable in Shyfter.
4. Email addresses are up to date: the opening code is sent to the email address on the employee's profile. A wrong address prevents them from opening their payslips.
5. Access is limited: only the people who need it have the Can manage payslips option.
6. Departures are prepared: before deactivating an employee, make sure they have their payslips through the legal channel, as they will no longer be able to log in to Shyfter afterwards.

If an employee disputes it

If an employee believes they have not received their payslips in the proper form, or refuses the electronic format:

• Give them their payslips through the legal channel: on paper or through access to the archive of your social secretariat or payroll software.
• Respect their choice: in Belgium, they can return to paper after the current calendar year; in France, they can object at any time.
• Contact your social secretariat or your payroll provider: they hold the originals and can support you on the legal aspects.

For any question about how payslips work in Shyfter, our support team is available through the in-app chat.