This article explains how Deel clients can use the bulk edit feature to edit the details of their workforce in bulk.

The Bulk edit feature also enables clients to record the changes made to their workers’ data and log the reasons for modifying any data for audit purposes.

In this article:

About Bulk Edit of Workers’ and Payroll Contract Information 

How to Download Current Data of Workers

How to Upload New Data of Workers

What are the accepted formats in every field?

Validation Errors & How to Fix Them

Frequently Asked Questions

 

About Bulk Edit of Workers’ and Payroll Contract Information

Deel clients can edit workforce information and payroll contract details in bulk directly from the platform.

Clients can bulk edit:

• Worker details (for all worker types)
• Payroll contract information (applies to Direct Employees Payroll only)
  
  

With the Bulk Edit feature, clients can download a .csv file, edit the necessary fields, and upload it back to the Deel platform. This saves time and reduces manual errors when updating worker or contract information.

What does the CSV file contain?

In addition to the workers’ data, the CSV file includes the modification reasons allowed by the client admin.

Depending on your organization’s settings, the file may also include two additional columns for each editable field:

• A column to schedule a data change to occur at a future date.
• A column to record the reason for modifying the data.

 

How to download the current data of workers

✅ Step 1 - Click on the People icon, followed by the People tab

Click the three dots in the top-right corner of the People tab, then select Bulk Edit of Workers’ Information or Bulk edit payroll contracts.

 

 

✅ Step 2 - Download Current Data of Workers 

Click on download current data of workers to choose the workers whose information will be edited and the fields they wish to modify.

 

✅ Step 3 - Select applicable workers

Select the workers whose information will be edited.

Note: When bulk editing payroll contracts, clients must select the entity before choosing the workers.

 

✅ Step 4 - Select the fields that will be edited

Only the fields applicable to the selected worker type will be available to edit. 

 

✅ Step 5 - Select the modification reasons

Clients can provide reasons as to why they are modifying the data and can schedule changes to come into effect on a specific date and time.

 

✅ Step 6 – Download and edit the current data of workers

Click on the Download button to generate a .CSV file containing the selected workers' data and the editable fields.

 

CSV Modification

In the CSV file, edit the fields that need to be modified. Open the downloaded CSV file using any spreadsheet editor (e.g., Microsoft Excel, Google Sheets).

Modify the data in the relevant fields as needed. Ensure that the data adheres to the allowed worker-type specifications.

After modifying the workers’ information, save the changes made in the CSV file on a local device.

 

How to Upload New Data of Workers 

✅ Step 1 – Select Bulk Edit of Workers’ Details or Bulk Edit Payroll Contracts

Select the People icon on the home page.

Click the People tab, then click the three dots in the top-right corner.

From there, select Bulk Edit of Workers’ Information or Bulk Edit Payroll Contracts.

 

✅ Step 2 – Select Upload New Data of Workers

Click Upload new data of workers. Clients can now select the modified CSV file from their device and confirm the upload.

After adding the CSV file, click Continue. Deel will validate the newly uploaded data, and the client can review the field that they wish to modify.

 

✅ Step 3 – Validate the uploaded data

The uploaded data will be validated for specific worker-type conditions:

For employee bulk edits, we will check for:

• Ongoing amendments as multiple active amendments against a single employee, are not allowed.
• If amendments are enabled for the country.
• Make sure the worker is active.
• We will also run additional validations for employee specifics (salary, job title, seniority) against each record.

It may take a while to validate the file, depending on the file size. The system will also perform basic validation to ensure that the uploaded CSV file is correct and that critical fields have not been altered to avoid disruptions.

 

✅ Step 4 – Review and Apply Changes

Clients can review the workers and their new data by clicking the Review button.

For EOR bulk edits, clients can also review the contract change timings. In countries where Instant amendments are enabled, the contract changes will apply immediately. Any additional deposit requirements resulting from change requests in certain contract fields are available to review as well.

Clients need to tick the checkbox to confirm that they have reviewed and approved the imported data.

 

✅ Step 5 – Submit and Sign 

After the client has reviewed and approved the bulk edits, they will be required to sign the change request.

This action will automatically generate amendment requests for each employee contract.

 

When bulk editing Direct Employee payroll contracts, clients can track the upload status by going to Entity → Entity Details → Mass Actions Logs. If the upload fails, Deel will send an in-app notification to alert the client.

 

What are the accepted formats in every field?

[ACCORDION] CSV Fields

Date of birth	The format should be YYYY-MM-DD
Work email	johndoe@mail.com
Nationality	Format should be ISO 3166-1alpha-2, for example: US
Phone	Input should be a numeric value
Calling code	Country calling code with leading +, for example: +972
Country	Format should be ISO 3166-1 alpha-2, for example: US
State	Format should be ISO state / province,for example: TX
Vacation yearly policy	Input should be a numeric value Days off per year. If the policy is unlimited, leave the field blank.
Vacation accrual start date	Format should be YYYY-MM-DD
Employee number	Input should be a numeric value
Gross salary	Input should be a numeric value, for example 1000.45
Employment type	The value must be either: PART_TIME FULL_TIME
Part time percentage	If employment type is part time this field will contain part-time percentage, for example: 50.  Leave empty if the worker is full-time
Contract currency	Format should be ISO 4217, for example USD
Contract effective date	YYYY-MM-DDTHH:mm:ssZ, for example: 2015-09-08T04:00:00+00:0
Contract timezone	Here’s the list of timezones https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tz_database_time_zones For example: America/Toronto
Department	The value must match the name of the Department in Organization Settings.  All levels of the nested Department hierarchy need to be specified using // as the separator. Example: Product//Product Management//Product Operations
Work location	The value must match the name of the Work location in Organization Settings.
Direct manager	The value should be the work email of the direct manager
Emergency Contact	Required : Full name, Dial Code, Phone number, Relationship

[/ACCORDION]

 

Common Validation Errors & How to Fix Them

[ACCORDION]Custom field value not found

The entered value cannot be found. 

Fix this error by making sure that the correct value is being entered. 

Please note: It is not possible to create a new value within the custom field using the Bulk Edit feature.

[/ACCORDION]

[ACCORDION]Nested custom field depth can't be more than 3

Fix this error by making sure the data follows the correct format. For example, Product//Product Management//Product Operations. Each // indicates a level and we have a maximum of three levels.

[/ACCORDION]

[ACCORDION]Nested path for custom field values not found A, B, C

The custom field and value exist, but the entered order levels don’t exist. Fix this by entering the correct order of levels.

[/ACCORDION]

[ACCORDION] A Direct manager was found for {Worker}, but the CSV file has an empty value for the direct manager field. Reupload the CSV file with the filled value of the direct manager, or by continuing, the direct manager relationship will be deleted

 

This is a warning message: If the direct manager exists and should be deleted, then the client can proceed. If they want to fix this, fill the direct manager with their work email in the CSV file.

[/ACCORDION]

[ACCORDION]CSV Snapshot not found

Please use the CSV file that was downloaded using the Bulk Edit feature, as this file contains values associated with the data.

[/ACCORDION]

[ACCORDION]Manager not found

Fix this by providing the right work email in the CSV File.

[/ACCORDION]

 

[ACCORDION] Expand for a full list of Validation Errors: 

Process Step	Error message	Applicable to EOR	Applicable to IC	Applicable to HDE	Applicable to GP
Download	Hris profile ids and column names are mandatory	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Download/Upload	hrisProfileOids are expected	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Download/Upload	Invalid format  Note: "Format" here doesn't refer to the file format of the csv, but rather the type of action taken (download or upload or review). If the action taken is somehow none of these, an invalid format error will be returned	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Upload	Joi validation failed: ${errors} (DEFINE ALL JOI ERRORS)	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Download/Upload	Access denied  Note: Error will occur if a non-client tries to download or upload	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Download/Upload	Some workers cannot be edited as they do not belong to the client's group or they do not exist. Remove the following Deel Internal IDs and their data, and try again: [${ids}]	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Download/Upload	Some workers cannot be edited as they do not belong to the client's group. Remove the following Deel Internal IDs and their data, and try again: [${ids}]	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Download/Upload	Column name ${columnName} is not supported	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Download/Upload	Column name ${columnName} is not supported for EOR employees	Yes	No	No	No
Download/Upload	No column names provided	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Upload	Please check the format of the date of birth, it should be YYYY-MM-DD but ${value} was sent instead	No	Yes	Yes	No
Upload	Employee cannot be under 18 years old.	No	Yes	Yes	No
Upload	Seniority level must be one of the predefined values	No	Yes	Yes	No
Upload	Effective date should be the same for all fields in IC contracts	No	Yes	No	No
Upload	Only one draft work statement is allowed	No	Yes	No	No
Upload	Contract does not have active data to amend	No	Yes	No	No
Upload	Joi validation for contractors: (DEFINE ALL JOI ERRORS) currency: Joi.currency(), rate: Joi.number().positive(), cycleScale: Joi.workStatementCycleScale(), jobTitleName: Joi.string().allow(null).max(255), seniorityName: Joi.string().allow(null).max(255), toBeAppliedDate: Joi.plainDateString(), effectiveDate: Joi.plainDateString(), terminationNoticeDays: Joi.number().integer().positive().allow(0).max(4000), scope: Joi.string().min(30).max(10000), specialClause: Joi.string().max(10000).empty('')	No	Yes	No	No
Upload	Job title id is invalid	No	Yes	No	No
Upload	Seniority is invalid	No	Yes	No	No
Upload	Seniority level must be one of the predefined values	No	Yes	No	No
Upload	${label} is not allowed to be changed  Note: "Label" here refers to one of the following: 'Completion date', 'Effective date', or 'Start date'	No	Yes	No	No
Upload	${label} can't be earlier than ${period.min}	No	Yes	No	No
Upload	${label} is too in the future	No	Yes	No	No
Upload	${label} can't be later than ${period.max}	No	Yes	No	No
Upload	Payment rate cannot be more than ${maxRate} ${currency} Note: maxRate depends on the currency	No	Yes	No	No
Upload	Joi validation payment cycle: (DEFINE ALL JOI ERRORS) scale: Joi.string().valid('monthly', 'semimonthly', 'calendar-month', 'biweekly', 'weekly', null).default('monthly'), dueType: Joi.string().when('scale', [ { is: 'monthly', then: Joi.string().valid('REGULAR', 'AFTER_MONTH', 'WITHIN_MONTH').default('REGULAR'), otherwise: Joi.string().valid('REGULAR').default('REGULAR'), }, ]), dueDays: Joi.alternatives().conditional('scale', [ {is: 'weekly', then: Joi.number().min(0).max(7).default(0)}, {is: 'semimonthly', then: Joi.number().min(0).max(15).default(0)}, {is: 'biweekly', then: Joi.number().min(0).max(14), otherwise: Joi.number().min(0).max(90).default(0)}, ]), payBeforeWeekends: Joi.boolean().default(false)	No	Yes	No	No
Upload	differentEffectiveDate (test to find the actual error)	Yes	No	No	No
Upload	invalidSalary (test to find the actual error)	Yes	No	No	No
Upload	backDatingEffectiveDate (test to find the actual error)	Yes	No	No	No
Upload	specificAmendmentDisabled (test to find the actual error)	Yes	No	No	No
Upload	Contract not found	Yes	No	No	No
Upload	Amendments v2 is not enabled for this organization	Yes	No	No	No
Upload	Only active contracts can be edited	Yes	No	No	No
Upload	This contract has another amendment in progress	Yes	No	No	No
Upload	Invalid seniority level. Please select one from the list below	Yes	No	No	No
Upload	This field can't be empty. Please, enter a valid value (to test)	Yes	No	No	No
Upload	Amendment has disabled items; changes cannot be confirmed	Yes	No	No	No
Upload	Amendment ${amendmentFlowId} not found	Yes	No	No	No
Upload	Something went wrong with creating eorsow	Yes	No	No	No
Upload	Change request ${changeRequestId} not found	Yes	No	No	No
Upload	Contract not found	Yes	No	No	No
Upload	Something went wrong with getting active eorsow data	Yes	No	No	No
Upload	Something went wrong with getting the country validations data	Yes	No	No	No
Upload	Due to compliance, salary reductions are not possible in ${country}	Yes	No	No	No
Upload	Minimum salary for ${countryName} is ${this.formatSalary(minSalary, contractCurrency)}	Yes	No	No	No
Upload	Maximum salary for ${countryName} is ${this.formatSalary(maxSalary, contractCurrency)}	Yes	No	No	No
Upload	Seniority not found	Yes	No	No	No
Upload	Job title cannot be empty	Yes	No	No	No
Upload	C-Level job title is not allowed	Yes	No	No	No
Upload	${amendmentItem?.label || item.item} is disabled in country ${context.contract.employmentCountry}	Yes	No	No	No
Upload	Effective date can't be in the past	Yes	No	No	No
Upload	Deleting draft amendments failed	Yes	No	No	No
Upload	Probation period is not allowed.	Yes	No	No	No
Upload	Probation period type must be CUSTOM when there is probation value.	Yes	No	No	No
Upload	The minimum probation period for ${eorCountryData.country} is ${min} days.	Yes	No	No	No
Upload	The maximum probation period for ${eorCountryData.country} is ${max} days.	Yes	No	No	No
Upload	Amendments for worker type ${snapshot.EMPLOYMENT_TYPE} is not supported	No	No	Yes	Yes
Upload	All amending changes have to have the same effective date	No	No	Yes	Yes
Upload	All amending changes have to have the same modification reason	No	No	Yes	Yes
Upload	Could not find pending amendment to update	No	No	Yes	Yes
Upload	Pending amendment for contract already exists	No	No	Yes	Yes
Upload	Error parsing input custom fields	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Upload	Custom field not found	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Upload	Invalid Custom Field Value	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Upload	These profiles are blocking the update because they either do not exist or they're duplicated: [$ids]	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Upload	Error parsing input data	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Upload	Parsed column ${key} is not supported for EOR employees	Yes	No	No	No
Upload	Schedule date must be the same for all the following fields: ${verticalEdits.map((ve) => ve.key).join(', ')} for EOR contracts	Yes	No	No	No
Upload	An error occured during the edition of this EOR contract	Yes	No	No	No
Upload	[jobTitleName] not found	No	No	Yes	No
Upload	[senorityName] not found	No	No	Yes	No
Upload	Main employment not found for ${profile.id} (${profile.firstName} ${profile.lastName}) Note: When the CSV was manually created, an old hris profile was used. The old profile does not have a primary contract.	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Upload	Main contract not found for ${profile.id} (${profile.firstName} ${profile.lastName}) Note: When the CSV was manually created, an old hris profile was used. The old profile does not have a primary contract.	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Upload	Manager not found Note: Direct manager email doesn't lead to an existing profile	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Upload	Labels not found Note: HRIS Label - Only applicable to work location	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Upload	Label ${label.value} not found Note: HRIS Label - Only applicable to work location	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Upload	Database error	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes

 

[/ACCORDION]

 

Frequently Asked Questions

[ACCORDION] What worker details can I edit?

The fields that clients can edit vary from one worker type to another. Here is the list of fields which we support editing in bulk. If the client would like to edit any additional fields that are not seen here, please have them reach out to their account manager or contact Deel Support. 

Table of Fields by Worker Type: 

Direct Employee	Direct Employee - Payroll by Deel	Independent Contractor	Employee of Record
First name Last name Middle name Preferred name Date of birth Phone Calling Code Personal email Start date Work email Direct manager Vacation yearly policy Vacation accrual start date Country State City Street Zip Nationality Employment type Part time percentage Contract name Contract effective date Contract timezone Base compensation Contract currency Contract Variable Compensations Gender identity Ethnicity Job title Seniority Custom Fields	First name Last name Middle name Preferred name Date of birth Phone Calling Code Personal email Start date Work email Direct manager Country State City Street Zip Nationality Base compensation Contract Variable Compensations Gender identity Ethnicity Job title Custom Fields	First name Last name Middle name Preferred name Date of birth Phone Calling Code Personal email Start date Work email Direct manager Country State City Street Zip Nationality Base compensation Contract currency Gender identity Ethnicity Job title Termination notice period Special clause Scope of work Seniority Custom Fields	Base compensation  Job title  Seniority Custom Fields

 

[ACCORDION] Why is my uploaded CSV file showing an error?

The system does a basic validation to check if the right file has been uploaded, and that the fields/columns, etc, are not changed, as changing them would break the upload flow. Additionally, using special characters like commas is not accepted in currency updates. To avoid such errors, remove any special characters in the file.

 

[ACCORDION] Is there a limit to the number of employees in bulk? 

Clients can use the bulk edit option to edit up to 1000 rows of data at a time. 

[/ACCORDION]