Payroll systems · Dayforce
Dayforce
Dayforce's own documentation covers employees, deduction write, bank account write, hours and webhooks through the API. Access: Customer-only; DDN registration.
Integration method grade ? · field-level docs NOT publicly readable · last verified 2026-09-26 · Dayforce Implementation Guide — web services role features
What the API lets you do
| Question | Answer | Conf | What the documentation says |
|---|---|---|---|
| How do you get API access? | Customer-only; DDN registration | D | Register for the Dayforce Developer Network and test against a customer namespace with a user that 'needs access permissions to web services'; the API Explorer and field-level reference are behind DDN login. Source |
| Can you read employees and pay rates? | Yes — REST Employees | D | GET /api/{clientName}/V1/Employees/{XRefCode} with WorkAssignments, EmploymentStatuses, CompensationSummary and PayGradeRates, most supporting context dates. Source |
| Can you read pay statements? | Unverified — pay summaries only | U | EmployeePaySummaries returns pay date, hours, rate and amount by pay code, but no deduction or tax breakdown; no pay-statement endpoint was found publicly. |
| Can you write a deduction? | Yes — Payroll Election API | D | The Patch/Post Payroll Elections role feature lets web services 'insert and update employee payroll elections using the RESTful POST and PATCH operations'. No public field-level specification. Source |
| Can you write a direct deposit account? | Yes — DirectDeposits | D | The DirectDeposits employee resource: 'Insert or update employee direct deposit information.' Source |
| Can you read W-2s? | Unverified | U | No W-2 or tax-form endpoint in the public REST developer guide. |
| Can you read hours worked? | Yes — pay summaries, punches | D | EmployeePaySummaries returns pay date, business date and net hours, filterable by date range, employee and pay group; punches and schedules have endpoints. Source |
| Does it push change events? | Events via Integration Studio | D | The Event Driven HR Changes (Outbound) connector sends employee data on HR or payroll election changes, with old and new values and a timestamp. Source |
| How does an integration authenticate? | Token for a web-services user | D | POST to dfid.dayforcehcm.com/connect/token with grant_type=password, company ID and a dedicated web-services user's credentials. Source |
Deduction write, in detail
For benefits, HSA/FSA and 401(k) integrations. 3 of 10 fields are unverified — no public source states the answer. Compare every system on the deduction write detail page.
| Field | Value | Conf | Note — and what a correct answer needed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deduction read | Unverified | U | No public GET payroll-elections endpoint was found. A correct answer needed the DDN Payroll Election API reference. |
| Deduction write | API + CSV import | D | Payroll elections via POST/PATCH web services, or Payroll Import CSV files that must be approved and published before taking effect. |
| Pre-tax vs post-tax at write | Inherited from code | D | 'Dayforce applies taxation rules ... based on the tax settings of the earning or deduction to which the option is mapped'; no taxability field on the election. |
| Amount vs percent | Code-dependent | D | Choosing a code shows 'any parameter options that were configured for the specific earning or deduction code'; employer contributions offer percentage or amount. |
| Effective dating | Effective Start / End | D | Payroll elections carry a required Effective Start and optional Effective End. Which date drives pay-period selection for API writes is not stated. |
| Retro adjustment | Unverified | U | Retro pay summaries exist, but no retro behaviour for deductions or elections is documented publicly. |
| Employer contribution | Mapped to a code | D | Employer contribution settings (percentage or amount; annual, monthly or per pay) are mapped to an earning or deduction code. |
| Code taxonomy shape | Company-defined | D | Earning and deduction codes are configured per client in Payroll Setup; elections reference them by code. |
| Auth model | Token for a web-services user | D | Bearer token from dfid.dayforcehcm.com; the user role needs the Patch/Post Payroll Elections feature. |
| Data freshness | Unverified | U | No latency or SLA statement for payroll election writes. |
D vendor-documented · U unverified · — not offered. See every payroll system side by side in the Payroll API Capability Matrix.