HMRC Real Time Information (RTI) Payroll Changes

[jamesbrown]

If you pay your employees during a tax month you'll need to send the details of the payments via RTI by 5th of the month (i.e. the last day of the tax month). (If you want to look at the details this is called an FPS RTI submission).

If you don't pay your employees during a month (or in a quarter if you make quarterly PAYE payments) you'll still need to send a submission via RTI, saying that you haven't paid anyone. This is replacing the current NIL return process. (EPS RTI submission).

Both of these submissions need to be made electronically.

RTI reporting has relaxed, but you can't get out of it completely. See the thread I linked to previously.

Thanks. Perhaps my understanding of the PAYE nil submission is wrong. You seem to make a distinction between FPS and EPS that relates to payments made and not made, respectively, rather than to tax due. My understanding was the PAYE nil was purely a notice to HMRC that no tax was due, as would be the case when paying monthly at the secondary NI threshold, for example. Are you saying that an EPS RTI submission is made parallel to an FPS RTI submission when making a monthly payment that does not incur tax via PAYE?

[inniAccounts]

Think of the FPS as an electronic payslip - you send one per employee to HMRC whenever you pay them.

The EPS is like a 'statement' you'll send to HMRC, telling them how much PAYE you're going to be handing over in total. If you haven't issued any payslips for a given period you'll send them an EPS with lots of zeros on it.

You're right about current (pre-April 2013) NIL returns - if you've paid everyone below the NIC threshold (therefore no PAYE due) you send HMRC a NIL return. If you don't, they'll see you haven't paid anything into their coffers and think you've forgotten to pay your PAYE - and chase you accordingly. The current NIL returns are a polite way to tell HMRC to bugger off.

However, in the post-RTI world you'll still need to send an FPS (the electronic payslip) even if you pay your employee below the NIC threshold.

If you're having problems sleeping check out these links:
HM Revenue & Customs: Full Payment Submission checklist
HM Revenue & Customs: Employer Payment Summary checklist

[Contreras]

Baffling.

From 6th April you must send an RTI submission every month even if you don't pay yourself. If you're paying yourself annually you (or your accountant) still need to make monthly RTI submissions.

Unless the business has registered as a PAYE Annual Scheme.

Once your business is registered as an annual scheme, you do not need to send in EPS for the other 11 months of the tax year that you make no payments to employees. If you think this might apply to you, contact HMRC's Payment enquiry helpline and have your Accounts Office reference number to hand.

What do you find baffling about that?

[inniAccounts]

Unless the business has registered as a PAYE Annual Scheme.

Good spot Contreras. I've just been hunting back through the HMRC's updates - looks like this is a last minute comm, came out as an update in the first week of March.

[Danielsjdaccountancy]

You beat me to it Contreras