About the Role
The Germany Payroll Specialist is a subject-matter expert responsible for the accurate, compliant and timely delivery of German payroll across GoGlobal's in-house client portfolio. Based in Romania within RDC Central, this role will build dedicated Germany payroll capability in GoGlobal's EMEA regional delivery model, creating resilient coverage, repeatable processes and scalable support close to GoGlobal's European client base. This is a hands-on specialist position for someone with strong practical knowledge of German payroll, including gross-to-net processing, social security and tax requirements, statutory reporting, employee lifecycle changes, payroll controls and year-end activities. The successful candidate will work autonomously in a remote environment while partnering closely with Germany subject-matter experts, local partners, internal stakeholders and the Payroll Operations Lead. This role is ideal for an experienced Germany payroll professional who wants to apply deep country expertise in a global, fast-paced services environment while helping establish Germany payroll delivery capability within RDC Central in Romania.
Responsibilities
Germany Payroll Processing
•Own the end-to-end processing of German payrolls for a portfolio of GoGlobal clients, ensuring accuracy, compliance and on-time delivery every cycle.
•Process and validate payroll inputs, including joiners, leavers, salary changes, variable pay, overtime, bonuses, absences, benefits, deductions and corrections.
•Apply German payroll tax and social security requirements accurately, including employee and employer contributions, statutory deductions and applicable payroll treatments.
•Coordinate required payroll declarations, statutory submissions and payment outputs with internal teams and authorised local partners within agreed deadlines.
•Process and reconcile payroll journals, ensuring payroll outputs align with client finance requirements.
•Validate statutory benefits, leave-related payroll treatments, severance-related items and other country-specific calculations, escalating complex cases where required.
•Produce and distribute payslips, annual employee payroll statements and other required payroll documentation accurately and on time.
•Complete payroll year-end activities, reconciliations, reporting and audit preparation for assigned German payrolls.
Compliance & Regulatory Adherence
•Maintain current knowledge of German payroll legislation, tax and social security requirements, collective agreement considerations and employment-related payroll changes, proactively flagging impacts to the EMEA RPO and Data & Compliance function.
•Ensure all German payrolls are processed in line with applicable statutory requirements, authorised guidance and GoGlobal's internal compliance standards.
•Monitor and apply relevant legislative, regulatory and statutory rate changes affecting assigned German payrolls.
•Maintain accurate and audit-ready payroll records for all assigned clients, ensuring documentation meets regulatory and internal governance standards.
•Support internal and external audits by providing accurate payroll data, evidence of controls and clear explanations of processing decisions.
Client & Stakeholder Management
•Act as the primary payroll contact for designated Germany payroll clients, managing day-to-day queries with professionalism and accuracy.
•Communicate proactively with clients on processing timelines, legislative changes and payroll-related actions required from their side.
•Liaise with client HR and finance teams to collect and validate payroll inputs, resolve discrepancies and ensure clean data ahead of processing.
•Escalate complex client queries, compliance risks or payroll errors to the EMEA RPO and relevant Germany subject-matter experts in a timely and structured manner.
•Support client onboarding, parallel runs and go-live activities for new German payrolls, ensuring configurations, calendars and controls are established correctly.
Data Quality & Process
•Conduct pre- and post-payroll data-quality checks to identify and resolve discrepancies before outputs are delivered to clients.
•Maintain and update Germany payroll SOPs, run guides, calendars, checklists and process documentation, ensuring they reflect current requirements and GoGlobal operating standards.
•Identify manual inefficiencies in Germany payroll processes and contribute ideas for automation, tooling improvements and standardisation within RDC Central.
•Support system changes or new payroll tools affecting Germany payroll delivery, acting as the Germany payroll technical point of contact for testing and validation.
•Contribute to RDC Central and the broader EMEA payroll operations team by sharing Germany payroll knowledge, supporting cross-training and providing documented backup coverage.
Requirements
•3+ years of hands-on Germany payroll processing experience, with strong working knowledge of end-to-end payroll calculations, controls, statutory requirements and payroll reporting.
•Strong understanding of German payroll tax and social security requirements, employee lifecycle processing, statutory submissions and payroll reconciliations.
•Experience applying country-specific payroll rules and working with local advisers or authorised partners on complex payroll matters.
•Comfortable working remotely and independently, managing multiple client payrolls simultaneously to strict deadlines.
•Strong attention to detail with a structured, methodical approach to payroll processing, controls and data validation.
•Experience using German payroll software, bureau platforms or equivalent in-house payroll systems.
•Professional working proficiency in German and English, with the ability to explain payroll matters clearly to clients and non-payroll stakeholders.
•Proficiency in payroll software and Microsoft Excel; experience with cloud-based payroll or HRIS platforms is advantageous.
•Comfortable working with AI-assisted tools and open to continuous learning as RDC Central and the payroll function evolve.
•A recognised German payroll, accounting or HR qualification, or equivalent relevant professional certification.
•Experience working in a payroll bureau, outsourced payroll, EOR, shared-services or global payroll environment.
•Experience with German payroll applications, local statutory portals or equivalent country payroll platforms; previous experience with DATEV payroll software is desirable.
•Experience supporting payroll audits, statutory reviews or compliance assessments in Germany.
•Experience supporting payroll implementations, transitions or knowledge transfer into a regional delivery centre.
•Knowledge of GDPR and data-protection obligations in a payroll-processing context.
About GoGlobal
GoGlobal is a professional services company that guides, establishes and manages global operations with compliance and confidence, bringing a human touch to entering new markets and consolidating vendors through a single point of management. It has a presence in over 140 countries on six continents. Services provided include:
•Entity Solutions: Entity establishment, Corporate secretarial & directorship services, Domicile services, Dormancy/Liquidation
•HR Solutions: Global recruitment, Employer of Record (EOR), Agent of Record (AOR), Global benefits, Global payroll, International HR Consulting
•Finance Solutions: Accounting & Tax
GoGlobal is privately owned, not for sale, and not backed by venture capital or private equity; it measures success by results rather than hours worked, does not offer equity plans but offers partnership opportunities and profit-sharing to outstanding employees, prioritizes organic growth over mergers and acquisitions, shares its financials with the team monthly, and embraces fully remote work with hybrid options in some countries. English is the company's official language.
