If you noticed an unexpected debit from your bank account after your first payroll on Playground, it is most likely a Historical Liability Debit. This article explains what it is, how the amount is determined, and where to find the details.
What Is a Historical Liability Debit?
A Historical Liability Debit (HLD) is a one-time collection for payroll tax liabilities you accrued with your previous payroll provider that were never paid to the tax agencies.
When you end services with a prior payroll provider, that provider returns any unpaid tax liabilities to your bank account. Those taxes are still owed. Check, our payroll processor, collects those funds and remits them to the correct agencies on your behalf so your account stays in good standing.
💡 The HLD is not a Playground fee, and it is not a duplicate payroll charge. Every dollar collected goes directly to a tax agency.
How the Amount Is Determined
Check collects and remits any liability that is still in an open period. A tax period refers to how often that tax is paid: monthly, quarterly, or annually.
A historical liability falls in an open period when your company start date and the tax liability fall within the same period.
Using a company start date of March 8 and a historical payroll dated February 9:
Monthly tax | Not collected. The liability falls in February and the start date falls in March — two different monthly periods. |
Quarterly tax | Collected. Both dates fall in Q1, so the period is still open. |
Annual tax | Collected. Both dates fall in the same calendar year, so the period is still open. |
This is why the HLD amount rarely matches a round number or a single payroll total — it is the sum of several individual tax liabilities across different agencies and frequencies.
When the HLD Is Collected
Check schedules the HLD after your first payroll approval deadline and collects it 10 business days after your first payday.
🚨 Plan ahead for this debit. Make sure the funds are available in your payroll bank account on the collection date, which is listed on your Historical Liability Debit Analysis Report.
If your first payroll fails for insufficient funds, it has no impact on the HLD schedule. Check will still attempt to collect the HLD 10 business days after your first payday.
Where to Find Your HLD Details
You have two places to confirm exactly what you were charged and why.
The Email You Received
When your HLD is scheduled, we email you a notice that includes a copy of the Historical Liability Debit Analysis Report. This report breaks down every tax that makes up the HLD amount, the agency each tax is owed to, and the date of the collection. If you are asking "why was I charged this amount," the answer is in that report.
💡 The notice goes out around your first pay run, when you are receiving a lot of onboarding email. Search your inbox for "Historical Liability" before assuming you did not receive it.
In Playground
While logged into your Playground account on web, navigate to the Payroll tab.
Click Tax.
Click the Transactions tab.
Locate the transaction matching the date and amount of the debit on your bank statement. Use Add filters to narrow the list by date if you have a long history.
Why the Charge May Look Unfamiliar
Most HLD questions come down to one of the following.
The debit lists "Check Payments LLC" | Check is Playground's payroll processor. Payroll and tax debits are initiated by Check, so their name — not Playground's — often appears on your bank statement. This is expected. |
The amount does not match a payroll | The HLD is separate from your payroll debit. It covers taxes from payrolls you ran on your previous provider, so it will not line up with anything you approved in Playground. |
It arrived days after payday | The HLD is intentionally collected 10 business days after your first payday, so it lands well after your first payroll debit clears. |
You already paid the agency | If you or your prior provider already remitted a tax included in the HLD, email [email protected] with proof of payment so our payroll team can review and correct it. |