Introduction to Time Registration Solutions

In BitaBIZ, you can choose between two main solutions for time registration: with or without hour bank. The right solution depends on how you want to use work hours in your company.

Time registration without hour bank is typically used for EU documentation of work hours, project time, and registration of payroll hours.
Time registration with hour bank is used when work hours need to be collected as a balance (hour bank) – for example, with flex time, overtime, and time off.

This article gives you an overview of which solution fits best for different types of employment and how to choose the right setup.

Time Registration by Employee Type

The choice between time registration with or without hour bank depends on the employee’s type of employment and how you want to manage work hours in your company.

Hourly paid employees, on-call temps, and fixed paid employees without accrual of extra hours will typically use time registration without hour bank, as work hours are either documented (according to the EU Working Time Directive) or paid directly as salary.

Fixed paid employees under a collective agreement will typically use time registration with hour bank, where hours are saved as a balance (and work hours are documented according to the EU Working Time Directive):

Employee Type	Characteristics	Recommended Time Registration	Typical Time Method
Fixed salary	No fixed upper work hours. No accrual of extra hours	Time registration without hour bank	Adjust time Hours only
Hourly paid	Paid per actual work hour according to rates.	Time registration without hour bank	Check in/out via app or terminal
On-call / temp / Student	Paid per actual work hour according to rates.	Time registration without hour bank	Check in/out via app or terminal
Salaried employees / similar terms (fixed work hours)	Fixed standard hours, e.g. 37 hours. Overtime is paid out or approved separately.	Time registration without hour bank Optionally with access to overtime via hour bank	Adjust time Start/end time Check in/out via app
Fixed paid employee with collective agreement	Fixed standard hours, e.g. 37 hours. Hours/balance saved in hour bank.	Time registration with hour bank	Check in/out via app Deviation registration
Self-managed	Not covered by the EU Working Time Directive	Absence only	none

Time Registration by Need

The choice between time registration with or without hour bank is not only about employee type. It also depends on what you want to use the registration for.

Use this matrix to find the best time registration solution based on your needs:

Need	What is the registration used for?	Recommended Time Registration	Typical Time Method
Payroll	The employee must register hours to be paid out as salary.	Time registration without hour bank	Check in/out via app or terminal Hours only Start/end time
EU time / documentation of work hours	Work hours must be documented according to the EU Working Time Directive, but hours do not necessarily need to be saved as a balance.	Time registration without hour bank	Adjust time Hours only Start/end time Check in/out via app
Project	Hours must be registered on projects, customers, cases, or activities.	Time registration without hour bank	Hours only with project/dimension
Hour bank / flex time	Plus and minus hours must be calculated and saved as a balance.	Time registration with hour bank	Check in/out via app Deviation registration
Overtime / time off	Extra time must be registered, approved for payroll, or saved for later time off.	Combination of with and without hour bank	Without hour bank: overtime is registered/approved separately With hour bank: hours are saved in hour bank
Absence without time registration	The employee only needs to register absence, not work hours.	Absence only	No time method
Planning in calendar	Work hours or shifts should be shown in the calendar, but not necessarily become payroll hours or hour bank.	Custom registration type	Custom registration type, e.g. “Shift”
Standard hours / working week	The employee’s expected work hours must be set up, e.g. 37 hours, part-time, or net hours.	Not a time registration method in itself	Start/end per day Net hours per day

Time registration - without hour bank

There are 4 time registration methods without hour bank to choose from:

3 active methods, where the employee must register their work hours daily
From and to time / Number of hours / Check in and out
1 deviation method, where the employee registers deviations from standard hours
Adjust time with start and end time or number of hours

📑 Guide to Time Registration without hour bank

Time registration - with hour bank

There are 2 time registration methods with hour bank to choose from:

1 deviation method, where the employee registers deviations from standard hours
Adjust time with start and end time or number of hours
1 active method, where the employee must register work hours daily
Check in and out

📑 Guide to Time Registration with hour bank

Check Correct Setup of Time Registration Method

An employee group or employee should generally only be connected to one time registration method – either with hour bank or without hour bank.

Check on the Employee’s Master Data Card

When an employee is assigned a policy on the master data card, the employee automatically gets the time registration method set up on the policy.

Employees should only have access to one time registration method. If both are activated, it becomes unclear which method should be used. In practice, this can feel like “double booking” of work hours.

Check via the Policy List

A policy should not have access to time registration both with and without hour bank.
On the policy, you select one of the two methods as the primary time registration method for the employee group.

The policy list shows which method is activated for an employee group’s policy.

EU's 48-Hour Rule

In HR Statistics → Report Library there are two reports, depending on which time registration solution the employee uses:

Time registration – without hour bank
📑 Report: without hour bank
Time registration – with hour bank
📑 Report: with hour bank

The reports show the employee’s actual work hours per week as well as average work hours for a selected period.

For the reporting to be correct, it is important that the employee’s work hours are only registered in one of the solutions. If work hours are split between with and without hour bank, the overview in the reports can be misleading.

Message Flow and Rules

BitaBIZ supports the EU Working Time Directive with a range of messages and rules that can be activated depending on your chosen time registration solution and method.

Exceptions Where the Employee Has Access to Time Registration Both With and Without Hour Bank

As a rule, an employee should only have access to one time registration solution – either with or without hour bank.

However, there are a few exceptions where it makes sense to give access to both solutions.

1) Registration without hour bank with special overtime

In some cases, it may be necessary to register overtime that should be earned as time off, even if the employee normally uses time registration without an hour bank.

For example, this could be for mandated overtime or special rules where the employee needs to accumulate hours in an hour bank for a limited period.

In this case, the employee can have access to both solutions.
Select the method “Overtime without work hours calculation” under registration with hour bank, so that time registration without hour bank remains the primary solution.

2) Registration with hour bank with need for project time

If an employee uses time registration with hour bank but also needs to register time on project job codes, it may be necessary to provide access to time registration without hour bank.

This makes it possible to register project time via job codes.

The same time registration method cannot be selected both with and without hour bank.
For example, if the employee uses check in/out (flex time) with hour bank, check in/out cannot also be selected under without hour bank. In that case, you need to choose another registration type that is compatible with job codes.

3) Fixed earning with hour bank for absence balance

The hour bank can also be used with fixed earning (monthly or yearly), where the balance is used solely as an absence balance for employees who normally register without hour bank.

A typical example is earning for the 6th vacation week, where the employee should be able to take hours off – but not earn overtime.

1) Do not select a time registration method for "with hour bank," as the purpose is to use the hour bank for an absence balance and not to earn hours via overtime. Use the On/Off button to reset any selected time method and then set the button to "ON".
2) The desired earning interval is linked to the hour bank. Earning is linked in the policy under the tab: Time registration - with hour bank
3) Access is given to: Time registration - With hour bank on the employee's master data card. With these settings, the employee gets access to take absence hours that are earned on a fixed basis, but does not get access to earn overtime hours.

FAQ

I'm unsure which time registration we should choose

If you're unsure how employees should register work hours, you first need to clarify what the registration will be used for.

In BitaBIZ, work hours can be managed in several ways:

Time registration - with hour bank

Flex time/hour bank: if plus and minus hours should be calculated as a balance.
Deviation registration: if the employee only needs to register deviations from standard hours.

Time registration - without hour bank

Payroll hours: if registered hours should be used for payroll.
Project hours: if hours should be registered on projects or job codes.
Documentation of work hours: if you need to document actual work hours, e.g., in relation to EU work hours regulations.

If work hours should be accumulated as a balance, you typically need to choose time registration with hour bank.

If work hours should not be accumulated as a balance, but used for documentation, payroll, or projects, you typically need to choose time registration without hour bank.

Should we choose time registration with or without hour bank?

Your choice of time registration solution depends on whether work hours should be accumulated as a balance or should not update an hour bank.

With hour bank: flex time, overtime, and time off (plus/minus hours)
Without hour bank: registration of work hours without balance (e.g., EU documentation, project time, or payroll)

See the table below for our recommendations depending on the payroll model:

Payroll model	Work hours model	Recommended BitaBIZ time solution
Salaried pay (no upper work hours, self-managed)	No fixed upper work hours. No accumulation of extra work/time off	Time registration without hour bank
Hourly pay (hourly paid)	Payment per actual work hour according to rates	Time registration without hour bank
On-call / temp worker (student help)	No fixed standard. Only payment for registered hours according to rates	Time registration without hour bank
Fixed monthly salary without flex scheme (Salaried, salaried-like terms, fixed work hours)	Fixed standard hours (e.g., 37 hours). Overtime is paid or approved separately	Time registration without hour bank (possibly + access to overtime)
Fixed monthly salary with flex time (flex account, hour bank, time off, extra work is accumulated)	Fixed standard hours (e.g., 37 hours). Hours/balance are accumulated in hour bank	Time registration with hour bank
Collective agreement with hour bank (work hours account, local agreement)	Standard hours regulated by collective agreement. Hours are accumulated in hour bank	Time registration with hour bank

How can our employees' hours be sent to payroll?

Hourly paid employees typically use time registration without hour bank, as registered hours can be used for payroll and export to the payroll system.

Read more about time registration without hour bank here.

Are there differences in the registration rules for time registration with and without hour bank?

Yes. The rules for whether a time registration may overlap with absence depend on the type of registration:

Text in registration window	Registration type	Hour bank	May overlap itself	May overlap absence
Work hours	Flex time	Yes	No	No
Overtime	Deviation registration	Yes	No	Yes
Time off	Deviation registration	Yes	No	No
Time registration	Time registration	No	No	Yes
Project / job code name	Time registration	No	No	Yes

Short explanation

All registrations may not overlap themselves.
Flex time (Work hours) and Time off may not overlap absence and overtime
Overtime may overlap absence and time registrations (without hour bank)
Time registration (without hour bank) may overlap absence, time off, overtime and work hours and all other registrations.

When creating a time registration, can you see if you are connected to time registration with or without hour bank?

Yes.

When you open the registration window to create a registration, you can see which solution you are connected to:

Time registration	Text in registration window shows
Without hour bank - all methods: start/end time, hours only, check in/out, adjust time	Time registration
With hour bank - check in/out (flex time)	Work hours
With hour bank - deviation registration	Overtime/time off

Examples:

If you are connected to time registration with hour bank - flex time, it will say "Work hours"
If you are connected to time registration with hour bank - deviation registration, it will say "Overtime/time off"
If you are connected to time registration without hour bank - it will always say "Time registration" in your registration window.

We have connected Adjust Time to a policy. We can't see that work hours are being created automatically for employees?

If you have created a brand new policy, employees who are assigned to the policy will automatically get the selected time registration method.

If you have changed an existing policy, the time registration method will also automatically update for employees assigned to the policy.

Read more about setting up "Adjust Time" in the article Time registration without hour bank

Reason for the issue:

If the time registration method is changed from "With hour bank" to "Without hour bank" on an existing policy – in this case, the employee's selected time registration will not automatically change from "With hour bank" to "Without hour bank". You will therefore need to open the employee's profile (master data card) and change the time registration from with hour bank to without hour bank.

Once the employee has access to Time registration without hour bank (Adjust Time), the system will start creating work hours automatically every day at 9 AM. Except if the day is blocked by an absence registration or public holiday, or if the day does not have standard hours set up.

What does work hours mean in BitaBIZ?

In BitaBIZ, “work hours” can mean two different things:

Standard hours/official work hours: The work hours the employee is expected to work, e.g., a fixed working week, start and end times, or net hours per day.
Time registration: The way the employee registers actual work hours, e.g., flex time, payroll hours, project hours, EU documentation, or deviations.

If you need to set up the employee’s fixed working week or part-time standard, see standard hours/official work hours.

If the employee needs to register work hours, you first need to choose whether the registration should be with hour bank or without hour bank.

Can we cover multiple employee groups with different time registration needs?

Yes. You can cover multiple employee groups in the same company by creating different policies/employee groups and assigning each employee to the correct policy.

Example setup:

Employee group	Typical need	Recommended method
Hourly employees	Need to register actual work hours at start and end	Terminal / check in and out APP / check in and out
Salaried employees without upper work hours	Need to document or adjust work hours without hour bank	Adjust Time
Employees covered by collective agreements	Need to accumulate plus/minus time or time off	Flex time / hour bank

The important thing is to first clarify what each employee group needs time registration for. Then you can choose the relevant setup per policy, where the desired time registration method is activated.

Can we have project registration, hourly employees, and employees with flex in the same company?

Yes. You can have several types of time registration on the same BitaBIZ account. The important thing is to clarify which employees need which methods.

Example:

Hourly employees typically register work hours for payroll, e.g., using the check in/out method from a terminal.
Employees covered by collective agreements with flex typically use time registration with hour bank, where they check in/out from the APP.
Employees working on projects typically register hours on their projects and job codes using the "hours only" method from the APP or Teams.

Project registration and flex time are not necessarily the same need. Therefore, you should first clarify whether project registration and flex apply to the same employees or to different groups.

Where can we see if we have time registration with or without hour bank?

On the employee’s master data card under "Application access" –> "Time registration" you can see whether time registration with or without hour bank is enabled, as well as which method the employee should use to register their time.

Additionally, on the policy list you can see which time registration method is connected to the policy, and whether it is with or without hour bank.