Payroll

Annual payroll reporting chores

There are a number of annual payroll reporting issues that employers are required to complete. With the tax year ending on 5 April 2026, this means there are several key payroll reporting chores that will need to be considered over the coming

Payroll annual reporting obligations

As we move into the start of 2026, it is not that long until the current 2025-26 tax year comes to an end and there are a number of payroll annual reporting obligations that must be completed. This includes sending a final PAYE submission for the tax

P45s, P11Ds and P60s – what are they?

Most employees will come across forms such as the P45, P11D and P60 during their working life, and knowing what each one is for can make it much easier to keep track of your tax position.

A P45 is issued to employees who leave their employment or

What counts as working time for minimum wage purposes

Employers must ensure they are paying staff at least the National Minimum Wage (NMW) or National Living Wage (NLW). The NMW and the NLW are the minimum legal amounts that employers must pay their workers. The latest NMW and NLW rates took effect on 1

Fixing problems with running payroll

Employers must report pay and deductions correctly to HMRC, but errors can usually be fixed in your next FPS.

Employers need to use payroll software or other payroll services to record employees pay, deductions and national insurance contributions

Setting up a payroll scheme

Registering for payroll is essential when hiring staff. From HMRC registration to legal compliance, getting payroll processes right ensures your team is paid correctly and your business avoids penalties.

When starting a business and hiring employees

Reversal of requirement to report more detailed employee hours paid

The government has scrapped plans for detailed PAYE reporting of employee hours from April 2026, citing concerns over cost, complexity, and practicality. Employers will stick with current rules.

As part of the Spring 2025 Tax Update: Simplification,

Mandating the Payrolling of benefits in kind update

HMRC has delayed mandatory payrolling of benefits in kind by a year to April 2027, giving employers and software providers more time to prepare. Penalties will be eased in the first year.

The requirement to report Income Tax and Class 1A National

Autumn Budget 2024 – Minimum Wage increases

The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves announced significant increases to the Minimum Wage rates on the eve of the Budget. The Chancellor confirmed that the government has accepted in full the proposals of the Low Pay Commission (LPC) for

Starter checklist for PAYE

When hiring a new employee, employers must determine the appropriate tax code and starter declaration for their payroll software. Using incorrect tax codes can result in the new employee over or underpaying their taxes. To ensure the correct

Employing under 16-year-olds and young workers

When a new employee is added to the payroll it is the employers’ responsibility to ensure they meet the employees’ rights and deduct the correct amount of tax from their salary. This includes any employees who are family members.

It is possible to

Statutory redundancy pay

If you have been in the same job for two years or more and are made redundant you will usually be entitled to redundancy money. The legal minimum that you are entitled to receive is known as ‘statutory redundancy pay’. There are exceptions where you

Employing staff for the first time?

There are a number of rules and regulations that you must be aware of when you employ staff for the first time.

HMRC’s guidance sets out some important issues to be aware of when becoming an employer.

Decide how much to pay someone – you must pay

Termination payment clearance process

The tax treatment of termination payments has changed significantly over recent years. The changes have aligned the rules for tax and secondary National Insurance contributions (employer (NICs)) by making an employer liable to pay NICs on termination

More about emergency tax codes

The letters in an employee’s tax code signify their entitlement (or not) to the annual tax free personal allowance. The tax codes are updated annually and help employer’s work out how much tax to deduct from an employee’s pay packet.

The basic

A reminder that NLW and NMW rates are increasing

A reminder for our readers that the National Living Wage (NLW) and the National Minimum Wage (NMW) rates will increase with effect from 1 April 2024.

The increase will see the NLW rate increased to £11.44 per hour, an increase of over £1 over the

Correcting payroll mistakes

Employers generally use payroll software or other payroll services to record employees pay, deductions and National Insurance contributions on or before each payday. They also need to consider other deductions such as pension contributions and

Assets made available to an employee

Assets such as computers, televisions and bicycles that are made available to employees can create certain tax, National Insurance and reporting obligations. There is no requirement to report anything to HMRC if the asset is office equipment only

Year end payroll reporting

It is not that long until the current 2023-24 tax year comes to an end and there are a number of year end payroll chores that must be completed. This includes sending a final PAYE submission for the tax year. The last Full Payment Submission (FPS)

Reporting early payment of wages before Christmas

There is a permanent easement in place for employers to report PAYE information in real time over the Christmas period. This can be for a number of reasons, for example, during the Christmas period the business may close meaning workers need to be

Increase in National Living Wage

The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Jeremy Hunt, confirmed that the government has committed to the proposals of the Low Pay Commission for increasing minimum wage rates from 1 April 2024. The actual wage rate recommendations of the Low Pay Commission

National Living Wage rates from April 2023

New National Minimum Wage (NMW) and National Living Wage (NLW) rates come into effect on 1 April 2023.

The new rate for the NLW will be £10.42 which will represent a 92p increase over the current rate. The NLW is the minimum hourly rate that must be

Setting up a salary sacrifice arrangement

A salary sacrifice arrangement is an agreement to reduce an employee’s entitlement to cash pay, usually in return for a non-cash benefit. The tax and NIC advantages of certain benefits provided as part of a salary sacrifice arrangement were removed

Minimum wage for different types of work

Employers must ensure they are paying staff at least the National Minimum Wage (NMW) or National Living Wage (NLW). The NMW and the NLW are the minimum legal amounts that employers must pay their workers.

HMRC’s guidance states that there are

IR35 reforms

One of the measures the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Kwasi Kwarteng referred to in the delivery of the Growth Plan 2022 (commonly referred to as the mini-Budget) concerned moves to simplify IR35 rules. This measure was one of the pre-election

PAYE Settlement Agreements

A PAYE Settlement Agreement (PSA) allows employers to make one annual payment to cover all the tax and National Insurance due on small or irregular taxable expenses or benefits for employees.

The expenses or benefits included in a PSA must be

Claiming Employment Allowance

The Employment Allowance reduces an employer’s NIC liability. The current allowance is £5,000. An employer can claim less than the maximum if this covers or eliminates their total Class 1 NIC bill.

The allowance is only available to employers that

Termination payments

The tax treatment of termination payments has changed significantly over recent years. The changes have aligned the rules for tax and secondary National Insurance contributions (employer (NICs)) by making an employer liable to pay NICs on termination

Completing P11D forms to report benefits in kind

The deadline for submitting the 2021-22 forms P11D, P11D(b) and P9D is 6 July 2022. The forms can be submitted using commercial software or via HMRC’s PAYE online service. Employees must also be provided with a copy of the information relating to

When you are required to register for PAYE

There are a multitude of rules that new businesses must follow when they start employing staff for the first time. These include ensuring registering for PAYE as an employer with HMRC. This must be done before the first payday and this process must

NIC Rates and Allowances for 2022-23

HMRC has published an updated version of the rates and thresholds for employers following the spring statement. The main changes relate to the increases in the National Insurance (NIC) thresholds. This will see the NIC threshold increase from £9,880

Calculating Minimum Wage if paid annual salary

New National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage rates will come into effect on 1 April 2021. These

Deciding length of CJRS claim period

The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) commonly known as the furlough scheme was due to come to an

Benefit conditions – Trivial benefits

The trivial benefits in kind (BiK) exemption applies to small non-cash benefits like a bottle of wine or