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HMRC WARN - EMPLOYERS: TIME TO GET REAL OR PAY THE PENALTY

25th Mar 2014
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This article first appeared in the AIA Accountancy e-News, for more information click here.

If you’re an employer, you should by now be well aware of the change that’s been made to how you give HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) your employees’ Pay As You Earn (PAYE) details: reporting in real time, sometimes called Real Time Information, or RTI.

Indeed, you should not only be well aware, but have also been doing this as a matter of course since 6 April 2013.

Reporting in real time means that the employer reports their employees’ PAYE electronically every time they pay them, at the time, or even before, they pay them. Unlike in previous years there are no annual end-of-year return forms for the employer to complete.

Employers are now reporting 99 per cent of the UK’s employee records to HMRC in real time, but there are still some with their head in the sand. These employers need to act now if they are to avoid having to pay a penalty once the tax year ends on 5 April 2014. 

So, if you’re one of these employers, what should you do?

If you don’t need your PAYE scheme any more – for instance, if your business has closed – you need to tell HMRC as soon as possible. HMRC’s guidance at www.hmrc.gov.uk/payerti/business-close-or-change.htm tells you how.

However, if you still have employees, you need to act now - even if you haven’t paid anyone – and begin to start reporting in real time as soon as possible. To get your business up-to-date there is advice on how to get ready at hmrc.gov.uk/actnow

And one last point – if you’re an employer who is entitled to only report PAYE once a year, don’t forget to make your 2013/14 report on time.

This article first appeared in the AIA Accountancy e-News, for more information click here.

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