Miscellaneous employer updates
Several relevant updates in this area are now available. In addition, HMRC has contacted us to advise that from 22 August HMRC commenced sending letters to employers disputing a PAYE charge.
HMRC advise that the review of why charges are disputed shows that while there are a number of different reasons, the main cause is duplicate employments. The creation of duplicate employments is not a new issue. However, filing PAYE information in real time means that there is an increased chance of an error occurring which can then create a duplicate record.
To help prevent this HMRC advise that they have:
- Updated their guidance, especially Information you must get right when running your payroll;
- Improved their IT to prevent the most frequent errors from generating a duplicate employment on HMRC systems; and
- Established processes to correct errors as soon as possible for those that do get through
In the letter HMRC apologise for the length of time it is taking to resolve such queries. If employers can’t immediately reconcile what they think they owe HMRC with what HMRC says is due, they should work through HMRC’s Reconciling PAYE charges helpsheet. This sets out the steps employers can take to eliminate some of the most common errors and resolve the issue without having to contact HMRC. The helpsheet also explains what they should do if, after all the checks, they still can’t reconcile the charge.
In addition to the most recent Employer Bulletin, some useful new guides are now available covering What happens if you don’t pay PAYE and National Insurance on time, What to do if you get an online penalty warning message and What happens if you don’t report payroll information on time. The 2014/15 rates and thresholds for employers are also now available.
A small number of employers have also been incorrectly sent an interim penalty warning letter when they have already submitted their P11D(b) for 2013–14. Most of the letters that have been issued inappropriately relate to employers who have changed their trading name recently. HMRC apologises for the inconvenience caused and are taking urgent steps to rectify the situation. All of the records impacted by this issue will be updated and a penalty will not be charged.