In response to HMRC's consultation document ‘Improving the operation of PAYE: Collecting Real Time Information’, the Northern Ireland Tax Committee of Chartered Accountants Ireland has submitted a response on behalf of members.

Whilst it is acknowledged that the decision to move to Real Time Information (RTI) has already been taken by Government, the response stresses that concerns remain about the potential cost to employers of RTI, particularly for smaller employers and agents, and in particular whether HMRC systems are sufficiently robust and accurate, and associated helplines are adequately resourced and trained to support this move in just under a year's time.

The document highlights an ongoing concern that the National Insurance and PAYE Service (NPS) is still relatively in its infancy and thus given the real challenges it has presented, the NPS must not only be working to maximum efficiency but also trusted and recognised by taxpayers and practitioners alike before embarking on what will be another major IT project for HMRC.

Of equal importance will be that online filing of forms can be done easily by all employers and that all data submitted on such forms is processed quickly and accurately by HMRC onto the NPS.

Chartered Accountants Ireland cites that a review of the NPS is warranted before the added complication of RTI comes into play in 2012. This review should seek to establish that data on the NPS is working properly, that the NPS has reconciled all the data it holds and can consistently produce accurate tax codes and timely year-end reconciliations.

The full submission is available on here.