Answer
For a basic termination, please see our FAQ here.
The first screen of the termination assistant will ask you to enter the termination date and select a a reason for termination. With the exception of a genuine redundancy or other listed circumstances, ordinary termination is typically the appropriate option.
If you select genuine redundancy, you will be prompted to enter the payout amount for the redundancy payout amount on this screen. Please see the ATO's page here for more information on redundancy payouts.
The next screen will ask you to select non-ETP payout options. This is where you can select or deselect which leave types you need to pay out to the employee as part of their termination. Lightning will calculate the appropriate payout amount for the selected leave types based on the employee's hourly rate (and their leave loading rate if applicable) and the current leave balance in hours and minutes.
You can also pay out additional non-ETP amounts on this screen. Please see the ATO's page here for more information on non-ETP payment types.
The next screen is where you can enter ETP payout options. A common example of this is paying out wages in lieu of notice. If you don't need to pay wages in lieu of notice, you can skip this screen by clicking Next.
Otherwise, there are a number of ways to payout wages in lieu of notice. The most common way is to select the Number of Hours Notice option. As shown in the example below, the employee is being paid out four weeks of wages in lieu of notice. In this example, fours week is equivalent to 152 hours (based on a 38 hour week), although the amount can vary based on the relevant contract or award.
Along with the option to also pay out unused sick leave if required, there is an advanced settings option. Selecting this before clicking Next will take you to the advanced settings screen.
The advanced settings screen is useful to view and edit the current lump sum leave balances being paid out if needed prior to completing the termination.
Additionally, when clicking Next, you will be taken to a further screen where you can view ETP codes and edit ETP tax amounts if required. This can be particularly helpful when processing genuine redundancies.
The final screen will show you the termination summary. This shows you any and all amounts being paid out along with the types of payouts. At this point, if you're happy with the termination amounts, you can click Finish to complete the termination.
If you want to generate a report of the termination you've just completed, click on the Preview button
Payments Made After Death Of An Employee
Lightning Payroll can handle ETP payouts made after the death of an employee, however non-ETP amounts such as unused annual leave, leave loading and long service leave (post 1993) are not paid out via the deceased employee's termination screen.
The ATO explains this here:
"You do not withhold from payments for unused annual leave, leave loading and unused long service leave made after the death of an employee.
Do not show these payments on your deceased employee's payment summary."
These amounts will need to be manually calculated and transferred outside of payroll to the appropriate party, such as a dependant or an estate.