> ## Knowledge Base Index > Fetch the complete knowledge base index at: https://help.heartsome.co/sitemap.xml > Use this file to discover available pages before exploring further. > Pure-Markdown content can be obtained by appending a '.md' suffix to the content URLs listed in the sitemap (without the trailing slash). # Recording and changing contracts Learn how to record a contract as an HR admin, when to create a new contract and when to edit an existing one. A contract holds the agreements with an employee: role, hours, work days and salary. Heartsome also uses the contract to calculate time off. A properly filled-in contract therefore also means a correct time off balance. #### Where do you find contracts? Go to People, click the employee and open the Employment tab. At the bottom, under Contracts, you'll see all of this employee's contracts, newest first. #### What's in a contract? A contract has five parts: * **The role**: job title, level (Junior, Medior, Senior or Leadership) and employment type, for example Permanent contract, Temporary contract, Intern or Freelancer. * **Key dates**: start date, probation end date and end date. Leave the end date empty for a permanent contract. * **Work schedule**: working hours per week, which days the employee works and how many hours per day. Split evenly divides the hours equally across the chosen days. * **Compensation**: salary with currency and interval (for example per month or per hour), and any benefits. * **Documents & notes**: upload the signed contract here, for example (max. 10MB per file), and add notes. #### When do you create a new contract? This is the most important rule: **if anything about the agreement changes, create a new contract.** Don't edit the old one. You create a new contract for example for: * a pay rise * a promotion or new role * more or fewer hours, or different work days * an extension of a temporary contract * a move from a temporary to a permanent contract Why? This way Heartsome keeps track of what applied in each period. You can see the salary history, and time off is calculated per period using the hours that applied then. Editing the old contract rewrites the past, as if the employee had always worked that way. #### Adding a new contract 1. Go to People → \[employee name] → Employment. 2. Under Contracts, click New contract. 3. Heartsome asks: How would you like to start? * **Based on the current contract**: the form is pre-filled with the details from the most recent contract. You only change what's different. This is usually the easiest option. * **Start fresh**: you begin with an empty form. 4. Fill in the **start date**: the day the new agreement takes effect. 5. Is another contract still running on that date? You'll see the switch **End the current \[job title] contract on \[date]**. Leave it on. Heartsome then automatically ends the old contract the day before the new one starts. 6. Change what's different, for example the salary or the hours. 7. Click Save. || Example: a pay rise from 1 January. Choose Based on the current contract, set the start date to 1 January, change the salary and save. The old contract automatically ends on 31 December. || Example: extending a temporary contract. Choose Based on the current contract, set the start date to the day after the current contract ends and fill in the new end date. Becoming a permanent contract? Leave the end date empty and choose Permanent contract as the type. #### When do you edit an existing contract? Only when you're fixing a mistake, for example a typo in the job title or a wrongly entered start date. To do this, click the three dots on the contract and choose Edit. You can also delete a contract, but only do that if it was created by mistake. Is the colleague leaving? Then don't fill in an end date yourself, but click Record leaving under Contracts. Heartsome then puts the end date on the contract, ends access after the last day and creates a checklist. See [When a colleague leaves](https://help.heartsome.co/en/article/when-a-colleague-leaves-13a3r0p/). #### Contracts once a leaving is recorded While a colleague's leaving is open, you can't add or delete a contract, and the end date is fixed. You'll see the message "\[name]'s leaving is recorded". You can still edit the rest of the contract, such as the salary, the hours or the files. That way you can still upload the termination agreement, for example. * **Is the last day changing?** Click Change on the leaving. * **Is the colleague staying after all?** Click Cancel leaving on the leaving. * **Is the leaving already closed and the contract renewed after all?** Add a new contract that follows straight on from the last day. Heartsome asks "Take back \[name]'s leaving?". If you click Save, Heartsome takes the leaving back, as if the colleague never left. Is a colleague coming back after a real time away? See [Rehiring a former colleague](https://help.heartsome.co/en/article/rehiring-a-former-colleague-1q33hac/). #### Time off balance message after saving Changing a contract for a period in the past, for example last year's hours? Sometimes a message appears after saving. Heartsome has already settled the time off for a closed year and doesn't change it by itself. The message shows how much time off it would have been with the changed contract. Should the change also apply to that period? Then correct the balance via Update balance. See [Managing an employee's time off](https://help.heartsome.co/en/article/managing-an-employees-time-off-88gni/). #### Who sees what? * **HR admins** can add, edit and delete contracts. * **The employee** sees their own contracts, including salary, on the Employment tab. * **The Manager** can view their direct reports' contracts but can't change them. The Manager doesn't see the salary. #### Good to know * Probation or a temporary contract about to end? Heartsome shows a reminder next to the employee on the People page. You set how many days in advance via [Setting your preferences](https://help.heartsome.co/en/article/setting-your-preferences-3atvzh/). * Contract without hours per week or work days? Heartsome then uses your company's standard work week to calculate time off.