I am a sole practitioner doing weekly payroll for a few clients. After RTI will I be allowed any leeway for annual holidays? Currently, I just catch up when I get back - with the client using a manual calculation to prepare wage slips by hand - it is only 15 people and fairly easy.Can I do the pay in advance. Trouble is the hours change every week. This would distort the true submission. Very concerned.
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Ah
Well I mentioned this over Christmas and was shot down. I was told if you take on a client 52 weeks a year then you have to do it!!
Very concerned?
But not enough to look at this current thread on RTI and regular payments?
That's why I don't do weekly payrolls
As a sole practitioner I have another sole practitioner on standby for emergencies while I am on holiday but won't do payroll on a weekly basis for this reason alone. I'd hate to be tied to doing the job at the same time every week too, it would take away flexibility which is the reason for being on my own.
Onto a more practical note, can you either do it remotely via logmein or similar, or can you make a reciprocal agreement with another local small practitioner?
I know that...
... I'm being insensitive and unhelpful and that I'll probably end up being sarcastic, but why are there so many threads where people think that there's going to be some special rul that will apply to them.
Don't do it. Get somebody else to do it that's got the satff to cope with the demands of it, or as suggested find some way to cover for it. There is no special rule.
There's the within 7 days exception for certain limited payments where you can't possibly know before payment exactly who's going to be paid exactly what, but that's it.
Find a way of working that complies with what's required or pass the work over to someone that can.
I was wrong, I managed to not be sarcastic.
Lets be practical. Legitimate concern here.
I would suggest informing client that while away he will have to pay the normal pay and file the forms early before you go on holiday.
Any adjustment will have to be paid after you are back .
This should cover a couple of weeks for us to relax!!
I'm with Luke ...
... just say no.
If the client needs weekly payrolls, then finds a bureau for them.
Why say no! With automation
Why say no? With automation it's not a big job and if they pay what is the problem?
Not if you sub it out to a bureau ...
... when you go away tell client to send the details to x who will deal with payroll whilst you are away.
WIFI
You chose to be a sole practitioner, so you do it.
I do, easy peasy with WIFI everywhere.
Hooray!
You chose to be a sole practitioner, so you do it.
I do, easy peasy with WIFI everywhere.
This having raised its head before, I was beginning to think that I was the only one that does clients' wages on holiday from wherever in the world I happen to be.
My clients are very impressed and with Moneysoft, it is so fast - so just do it. As KA says - all part of being a sole practitioner. If you don't like it - don't be one.
I remember once ...
You chose to be a sole practitioner, so you do it.
I do, easy peasy with WIFI everywhere.
... parked up in a layby, laptop on knee re-running a payroll on the way back from holiday as I had had a call from a client and there was some problem with an employees wages I had to sort out so they could CHAPs the pay before the weekend so the employee's mortgage wouldn't bounce!
Running in advance
Just to throw a spanner in the works about running in advance, you should see this link for how you are supposed to do corrections if something you already filed changes.
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/payerti/reporting/when-to-report.htm#6
FPS's in advance are not actioned until the month they are for, so the correction must be filed with the same date as the original. Otherwise two FPS's will be processed for the month.
We are awaiting advice from the HMRC software team about this.
Outsourcing
I have a part time staff member who runs my payroll for clients (5 weekly 35 monthly (mainly one man companies) and a couple of two weekly one annual).
Fees cover her wages and a little more. She also acts as receptionist when she's in so up to now this has worked quite well.
However, she is 63 and I need to think about after she leaves. (RTI has stessed her out!). I do not want to have anything to do with payroll and my other staff member has made it clear that she doesn't either (also she has enough accounting to do for me).
So choices:
Get rid of payrolls ( would probably lose clients as well).
Try and employ another part timer
Outsource.
I have just received a mailshot from payroll outsourcing company and am very tempted to try this route. They claim they can work invisibly between us and the client.
Has anyone any experience or recommendations (or horror stories).