Log In
Get Started
Log In
Get Started

Welcome to Paper Trails - Let's Get You Set Up

Everything you need in your first few weeks — deadlines, logins, training, and who to call. Bookmark this page; it's your home base

Download Your Welcome Guide

Your First Few Weeks

Four Things To Do

You don't need to know everything right away. We recommend doing these four things first, and the rest will be here when you are ready to explore further.

1

Activate your isolved login

Watch for your activation email, set a 12-character password, and add a passkey as your second factor.

2

Put your deadlines on the calendar

Submit by noon, three business days before payday. Funds are debited one business day before.

See your dates
3

Send your team their resources

Employees get an activation email automatically. Share the employee welcome kit and the printable help cards.

Get the resources
4

Take the isolved classes

How to Navigate isolved and Payroll Processing take about 25 minutes together and save hours later.

Start training

Key Payroll Dates

Your Payroll Timeline

Pick your pay day and we'll show you the two dates that matter.

Submit payroll by

—

By 12:00 pm ET. Anything after noon may be moved to the next business day.

Funds debited

—

 The full amount — wages and taxes — comes out of your account that morning. 

Employees paid

—

 Direct deposits land on pay day. Make sure funds are available to avoid bounce fees. 
This is a guide, not a guarantee. We will send a reminder to confirm the schedule for any week containing a bank holiday.

Cash flow tight this cycle?

Payro gives eligible businesses short-term payroll funding — same-day access, no credit impact to apply. Worth setting up before you need it.

Apply Now

Support

Multiple Ways to Get Help When You Need It

Start wherever makes sense. There's no wrong door — we answer the phone.

 

Fastest

Help Yourself

  • Login and MFA help at papertrails.com/help
  • Step-by-step guides and short videos
  • Hundreds of blog articles
  • Printable help cards for your team

 

 

Visit our help center

Best For Anything Specific

Your Dedicated Account Rep

  • Knows your setup, your people, your quirks
  • Payroll changes, corrections, off-cycles
  • One-on-one training on any topic
  • Custom reports, imports, and integrations
Email them now

General Support

Our Team

  • Phone: 207.721.8575
  • Email: payroll@papertrails.com
  • Support form at papertrails.com/contact
  • Or stop in to our Kennebunk office anytime!
Contact us

Training and Education

Get Good at isolved, Fast

The single highest-return thing you can do in your first month. Every class is 10–15 minutes.

Other Things You Have Access To

Tools, Integrations & Resources

Some are on by default, some just need a word to your processor. Filter to find what's relevant.

 

Learn & stay informed

The Blog

Frequently updated posts with answers to the payroll and HR questions you actually need.
Read the blog

Learn & stay informed

Monthly Webinars

7Expert-led training, generally the third Tuesday at 2pm. Live or on demand. 
See upcoming

Learn & stay informed

isolved University

Short, focused classes on every part of the platform — free with your login. 
Start learning

Learn & stay informed

Guides & Checklists

eGuides, infographics, and year-end checklists to keep you organized and compliant. 
Browse resources

Free for your team

People Cloud App

Paystubs, W-2s, PTO, and direct deposit from any phone or computer. 
Employee resources

Free for your team

ZayZoon

Employees access earned wages before payday, with no risk or liability to you 
See the benefits

Free for your team

FinFit

Financial health assessments, unlimited coaching, and credit and loan resources. 
Learn more

Free for your team

Employee Marketplace

Discounts and cash back on travel, dining, events, electronics, and retail.
Find savings

Free for your team

Voluntary Benefits

Dental, vision, accident, hospital, and life coverage through Corestream. 
Coming soon

Free for your team

rapid! PayCard

Electronic pay for employees without a traditional bank account. 
Contact your processor

Free for your team

TurboTax Import

Employees pull W-2 data straight into their return. No retyping, no errors. 

Free for your team

The Work Number

Instant, secure income and employment verification for loans, credit, and housing. 
Learn more

Workforce tools

Time & Attendance

Punches, breaks, overtime, and PTO — by clock, mobile, or computer. 
See how it works

Workforce tools

Hiring & Onboarding

Post jobs, score candidates, and onboard electronically with E-Verify built in. 
See how it works

Workforce tools

Benefits Administration

Online open enrollment with carrier and payroll integration, and accurate deductions. 
Get started

Workforce tools

Learning Management

Learn & Grow gives your team job-skill and compliance courses, plus your own content. 
Explore the benefits

Workforce tools

Expense Management

Employees submit expenses anytime, with alerts for anything outside your policy. 
Check it out

Workforce tools

Performance Management

Goals, 360 reviews, pulse surveys, and a 9-box talent grid, connected to payroll. 
See how it works

HR & advisory

HR Consulting

Handbooks, audits, and hands-on guidance from a local expert — one-time or ongoing. 
See our packages

HR & advisory

Labor Law Posters

An annual all-in-one poster plus digital access for your remote employees. 
Learn more

HR & advisory

Work Opportunity Tax Credit

Real money back at tax time for eligible hires — captured during onboarding. 
Talk to your processor

HR & advisory

FSA, HSA, HRA & COBRA

Pre-tax accounts and COBRA administered alongside your benefits and payroll. 
Talk to your processor

HR & advisory

Always-On HR

An AI assistant answering employee questions on pay, benefits, and time off.
Want to learn more?

Integrations

Payro

Short-term payroll funding when cash flow is tight. Same-day once approved. 
Apply now

Integrations

QuickBooks Online & GL

A custom general ledger built for your business, synced to QuickBooks Online. 
Talk to your processor

Integrations

Retirement & MERIT

120+ providers including Maine's MERIT, with 180 or 360 communication. 
Contact your processor

Integrations

Workers' Comp Pay-As-You-Go

Premiums calculated each cycle from actual payroll instead of an estimate. 
Talk with your processor

Integrations

Employee Navigator

Real-time sync of demographics and deductions, with single sign-on. 
Explore here

Integrations

Accountant Access

Direct isolved report access for your CPA, plus automatic journal entries. 
Contact your processor

Integrations

Custom Integrations & APIs

POS, timekeeping, billing, certified payroll — we'll make your systems talk. 
Talk to your processor

Integrations

Profit by Paymentus

Cards, bill pay, and invoicing that syncs with QuickBooks Online. 
Learn more

Protection

E-Verify

Free. Confirms work eligibility against DHS and SSA records during onboarding. 
Check it out

Protection

Background Screening

Employment, drug, and other checks with no setup fees on most services. 
Explore here

Protection

Acrisure Cyber Services Plus

Cyber scans, vulnerability guidance, breach support, and liability coverage. 
Get more info

Protection

Trust & Security

Strict access controls, regular audits, and ongoing staff security training. 
Explore here

For Your Team

Everything Your Employees Need

Resources for your employees, in one place.

 

Employee Welcome Kit

We put together a guide your employees can keep — how to activate their account, log in, set up multi-factor authentication, and use the wellness tools they have access to. Download it and send it out or hand it out at your next team meeting. 

isolved People Cloud Mobile App

Everything your employees need lives in one place — the isolved People Cloud app. From their phone, they can:

  • View paystubs and W-2s
  • Update direct deposit and tax withholdings
  • Request time off and clock in and out
  • Enroll in benefits during open enrollment
  • Access wellness tools like ZayZoon and the Employee Marketplace

It's free in the App Store and Google Play, or they can use myhrstuff.com from a computer. Their username is always their email address.

QR Code - Apple
QR Code - Google
isolved People Cloud App

Share this help card with your employees

Share this link to the downloadable help card or hand them out to your employees.
Downlad the Help Card Here
1

Activating an account

Flip to learn more

Activating an account

New employees are set up automatically and get an activation email from PaperTrails@myisolved.com.

  1. Click the activation link in the email.
  2. Enter the authorization code — the last four digits of their Social Security number.
  3. Set a 12-character password and security questions, then save them somewhere safe.
  4. Add a passkey (Face ID, fingerprint, or PIN) as the sign-in method.

Only the employer can resend an activation email — Paper Trails can't send it directly.

2

Where to log in

Flip to learn more

Where to log in

Two options, same account. The username is always their email address.

  1. isolved People Cloud app — free in the Apple and Google Play stores.
  2. myhrstuff.com — from any computer.

If asked to choose a "Tenant of isolved," pick PTRLS. That's the Paper Trails version.

Forgot a password? Neither you nor we can reset it. Use "I Forgot My Password" on the login screen and follow the wizard.

Need Help?

Visit our help center at papertrails.com/help for video walkthroughs, step-by-step instructions, and more.
Visit our help center

Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)

These are already available to your team at no cost to you. Point them to the People Cloud app and they'll find them under Third-party Apps.

Recommended

Passkey

Face ID, fingerprint, or a device PIN. No password to forget, nothing to intercept. Each device and browser needs its own passkey.
Learn how

Strong

Authenticator app

Google or Microsoft Authenticator generates time-based codes. Works without cell service.
Learn how

Basic

SMS text codes

Easiest to set up, least reliable and least secure. Vulnerable to phishing and SIM swap.
Learn how

Not getting SMS text codes? It isn't just isolved.

Starting in early 2025, US carriers changed how they handle business text messages — instead of a one-time approval, they now monitor and can filter or block at any time. A federal rule effective January 2026 added more requirements on top. Every business sending SMS is dealing with this. Check your message SPAM folders - most of the time they end up there. See more instructions on our help page.

Free Perks for Your Employees

These are available to your team at no cost to you. These can be accessed through the isolved People Cloud mobile app or by visiting myhrstuff.com or are already automatically running behind the scenes.

Earned Wage Access

Zayzoon

Access earned wages before payday — up to $200/day or $1,000 per pay period, transferred to a bank, Venmo, or gift card.
Learn more

Discounts and Savings

Employee Marketplace

Discounts and cash back on travel, dining, events, electronics and retail, right in the app.
Explore savings

Financial Wellness

FinFit

Financial health assessment, unlimited one-on-one coaching, and credit and loan options.
See more

Benefit Access

Voluntary benefits

Dental, vision, accident, hospital and life coverage through Corestream, with decision support.
Coming soon

Automatic

TurboTax Import

Enter an SSN and the company EIN and W-2 data pulls in automatically. No retyping.

Automatic

The Work Number

Instant, secure income and employment verification for loans, credit, and housing.
Availability varies by setup. FinFit loan products vary by state and are subject to credit approval. Check with your processor on what's enabled for your account.

Common Questions

Let's Get You the Answers You Need

The questions new clients ask most in their first few months. If yours isn't here, your processor is a phone call or email away.

Getting Started

  • Your implementation manager sets up your account during onboarding and you'll receive an activation email from PaperTrails@myisolved.com. Click the link, set a 12-character password, and add a passkey. If it hasn't arrived, check spam and then contact your processor.

  • Automatically. When an employee is added, isolved sends them an activation email. Their authorization code is the last four digits of their Social Security number. You can resend the activation from isolved at any time — Paper Trails can't send it on your behalf.

  • Two isolved University classes — How to Navigate isolved and Payroll Processing — take about 25 minutes together and save hours later. Then put your payroll deadlines on your calendar.

  • Your dedicated processor was introduced during onboarding and is your first call for anything payroll-specific. If you're not sure who that is, call the main line at 207-721-8575 or email payroll@papertrails.com and we'll connect you.

Deadlines & Processing

  • By noon ET, three business days before your pay date. For a Friday pay day, that's noon on Tuesday. Bank holidays shift this — we will confirm any week that's affected.

  • Payroll may have to move to the next business day, which pushes your debit and pay dates back too. Call your processor as soon as you know — sometimes there are options.

  • One business day before pay day, for the full amount including wages and taxes. For a Friday pay date, that's Thursday morning. Make sure funds are available to avoid bounce fees and employee direct deposit issues.

  • Call your processor before you submit. We also partner with Payro for short-term payroll funding — same-day access once approved, and applying doesn't affect your credit.

  • Yes. Contact your processor to schedule it and confirm timing and any additional fees.

Getting Help

  • We are open Monday through Friday 8:30am to 4pm.  You can visit papertrails.com anytime and chat with our online chatbot or fill out our contact form, where we will usually be in touch within one businss day.

  • Call 207.721.8575, email payroll@papertrails.com, or use papertrails.com/contact. For anything specific to your account, your processor is the fastest route.

  • Send them to papertrails.com/help first; most issues are covered there with videos. Neither you nor Paper Trails can reset an employee's password — they have to use "I Forgot My Password" on the login screen.

    To reset their self-service account or to change their email, watch this video here.

  • Carriers have been filtering business texts much more aggressively since 2025, and this affects every company sending SMS.   First have the employee check their Spam messages on their mobile device - it usually ends up there. Another fix is switching to a passkey or authenticator app, which don't depend on the carrier at all. Instructions are at papertrails.com/help.

  • No. For privacy and fraud protection we can't send paystubs, W-2s, or make direct deposit changes over email. Those go through the isolved People Cloud mobile app or through you as the employer.

  • Contact your processor. They'll scope what you need, confirm pricing, and help get your connected to the right team for setup. Most additions can be turned on within a few pay cycles.

  • Yes. Our HR consulting services come as an ongaing subscription or a one-time project — handbooks, audits, I-9 reviews, and hands-on guidance from a local expert.

Stay in the Loop

We'll Keep You Ahead of it All

1

The Blog

Compliance changes and payroll questions, updated weekly.

Read the blog
2

Monthly Webinars

Third Tuesday at 2pm. Register live or watch the recording.

View our webinars
3

Podcast

Small Business Big World, a vast library of payroll and HR discussions.

Browse episodes
4

Social Media

@papertrailspayroll on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and TikTok.

Explore All of Our Payroll & HR Services

Created with Fabric.js 5.2.4 Expense Management Applicant Tracking Time & Attendance Performance Management Employee Onboarding Benefits Administration Learning Management

Can’t find what you’re looking for? Contact our local team.

We’ll stay in the weeds to manage your payroll, Human Resources, and compliance needs.

Get Started
PT-Paperwork-Graphic