Fit for Work roll out

Fit for Work effectively replaces the old system where an employer could recover
statutory sick pay from HMRC. The new system is far more proactive and the belief
is that it will reduce overall sickness absence.

Fit for Work offers free, expert and impartial work-related health advice to help you
support both staff in work and those who are off sick and also to help you manage
the impact sickness absence can have on your business.

There are two elements to Fit for Work:

• Free, expert and impartial work-related health advice for you, your employees
and GPs via a website (www.fitforwork.org) and telephone line (0800 032 6235)

• Referral to an occupational health professional for employees who have been off
sick, or who are likely to be off sick, for four weeks or more.

The Fit for Work advice service went live at the end of 2014 and from early March
2015, GPs in Sheffield and North Wales began referring eligible patients to a Fit for
Work occupational health assessment. Fit for Work is being expanded across England
and Wales over a period of months with GPs being able to refer nationwide by
autumn 2015.

If you are an employer in an area where GPs can refer, you may start to receive
Return to Work Plans, which offer advice as to how you can work together with
your employees to help them back to work. The Return to Work Plans provide
recommendations and evidence of sickness, replacing the need for a fit note. You
can find out when GPs in your area will be offering the service by visiting
http://support.fitforwork.org/app/get_involved/type/gp.

You’ll be able to refer from autumn 2015, once GP roll-out has been completed.
The intention is that Fit for Work complements, not replaces, existing occupational
health provision. The Government has also introduced tax exemptions of up to £500
on medical treatments recommended by Fit for Work or an employer’s occupational
health service.

Posted byPaul ByrneinHealth & SafetyHMRCPayroll SoftwareSick Leave/Absence Management

CIS - Penalties and Appeals Service goes live

HMRC have announced that the Penalties and Appeals service, for The Construction Industry Scheme, has now gone live.

Details of how to access the service can be found at https://www.gov.uk/what-you-must-do-as-a-cis-contractor/file-your-monthly-returns under the heading, "If you disagree with a penalty".

The scale of penalties for late CIS returns is shown below.

How late the return is and associated penalty:-

1 day late £100
2 months late £200
6 months late £300 or 5% of the CIS deductions on the return, whichever is higher
12 months late £300 or 5% of the CIS deductions on the return, whichever is higher

For returns later than this, you may be given an additional penalty of up to £3,000 or 100% of the CIS deductions on the return, whichever is higher.

You must still file a return for the months when you made no payments to subcontractors (unless you request for your scheme to be made inactive). This is called a ‘nil notification’.

Posted byPaul ByrneinCISConstruction Industry SchemeHMRC

HMRC penalty notices to employers with fewer than 50 employees

HMRC has now issued the first in-year penalties notices to employers with fewer than 50 employees who missed the deadline for sending PAYE information to HMRC. Please see the News story on GOV.UK at https://www.gov.uk/government/news/pay-as-you-earn-paye-late-filing-penalties for further details.

Posted byPaul ByrneinHMRCPayroll SoftwareRTI

HMRC address change for employers

HMRC have changed their address for PAYE Penalties and Statutory Sick Pay (Form SP32 to manually calculate your employee’s Statutory Sick Payments).

If you are late reporting payroll information to HMRC and receive a penalty from 27th April 2015 all written appeals need to be sent to the address below. Similarly SP32 forms should be sent to the same address.

National Insurance Contributions & Employers Office,
HM Revenue and Customs,
BX9 1BX

Posted byDenise CowleyinHMRCPayroll Software

HMRC updates its Starter Checklist for new employees without a P45

On 8 April 2015, HMRC updated its Starter Checklist.

An employer can use this Starter Checklist to gather the information they need to operate PAYE for a new employee. The checklist will help an employer to complete the necessary information related to a starter that must be shown on the first Full Payment Submission submitted covering a starter’s first payment of wages.

Where a starter does not have a form P45 issued by a previous employer to give their new employer before their first payday, the starter’s information given in the Starter Checklist will inform the new employer what PAYE tax code they should use for the starter’s first payday. The Starter Checklist replaces form P46 (no longer in use) which a starter was obliged to complete in the absence of a P45 from a previous employer.

The starter checklist can be completed online and then the finished form can be downloaded, saved, and printed out. Alternatively, a black and white copy of the Starter Checklist can be printed from the online Checklist. This could then be given the starter to fill out.

Do not send a printed copy of the starter checklist to HMRC; it’s for the employer’s internal use only. Where a Starter Checklist is completed, employers are advised to keep the form for the current and previous three tax years.

Important note: Employers are supposed to verify the information provided on a P45 or Starter Checklist. A birth certificate, photo driving license, passport, and utility bills, can all be used as part of verifying an employee’s name, date of birth, current gender, address, NI number, etc.

Posted byAnn TigheinHMRCPayroll Software

Complete list of April tax changes

A complete list of all tax changes that took place on April 6 has been published on the gov.uk website.
Acting as a useful checklist, the following tax changes came into effect on Monday 6 April 2015:

- Individuals over the age of 55 have flexible access to their defined contribution pension savings
- The Income Tax Personal Allowance increases to £10,600
- The higher rate income tax threshold increases to £42,385
- The new Marriage Allowance comes into effect
- The starting rate of savings income tax reduces from 10% to 0% for savings up to £5,000
- The cash ISA limit increases to £15,240
- Child Trust Funds can now be transferred into Junior ISAs
- Spouses can now inherit their deceased partner’s ISAbenefits
- If an individual dies before the age of 75, they can now pass on their unused defined contribution pension savings free of income tax
- Beneficiaries of individuals who die under the age of 75 with a joint life or guaranteed term annuity can now receive any future payments from such policies free of income tax
- Employers will no longer have to pay employer NICs for employees under the age of 21
- Class 2 NICs for the self-employed can now be collected through Self-Assessment
- The Employment Allowance extends to include people employing care and support workers to look after themselves or family members
- A new annual remittance basis charge of £90,000 is introduced for non-domiciled individuals who have been resident in the UK in at least 17 of the last 20 years, and the charge paid by non-domiciled individuals who have been resident in the UK in at least 12 of the last 14 years has increased from £50,000 to £60,000
- Non-UK resident individuals, trusts, personal representatives and narrowly controlled companies are now subject to Capital Gains Tax on gains accruing on the disposal of UK residential property
- Capital Gains Tax annual exemption amount has increased to £11,100
- The Capital Gains Tax charge on disposals of properties liable to ATED extends to cover residential properties worth £1 million – £2 million
- The requirement that 70% of Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme money must be spent before EIS or VCT funding can be raised is removed
- The Fuel Benefit Charge multiplier for both cars and vans increases by RPI
- The Van Benefit Charge increases by RPI – in 2015-16 the Van Benefit Charge rate paid by zero emission vans is 20% of the rate paid by conventionally fuelled vans
- Tax Credit payments are stopped in-year where, due to a change in circumstances, a claimant has already received their full annual entitlement

Source: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/tax-changes-coming-into-effect-6-april-2015

Posted byCaoimhe ByrneinHMRCPayroll Software

Do you know your CIS obligations for HMRC ?

HMRC has published webinars, emails and videos on the Construction Industry Scheme which show how the scheme works, taking on and paying subcontractors and how to meet your tax obligations.

You can get business emails from HMRC on the Construction Industry Scheme (CIS).

The next live webinar is on 8th May 2015 from 9am to 10am where you can ask questions during the presentation and get answers from the HMRC host. You will need to register and log in at least 5 minutes before the webinar is due to start.

Posted byDenise CowleyinHMRC

UK - Employment Allowance now extended to Personal Carers

With effect from 6th April 2015, the Employment Allowance has now been extended to include individuals who employ personal carers and support workers. Such individuals who were previously excluded from claiming the allowance in tax year 2014-15, will now be entitled to deduct up to £2,000 per annum from their liability to pay secondary Class 1 Employer National Insurance contributions (NICs).

The new measure is intended to support individuals who need to purchase care for themselves or others.

To check eligibility and for further information about the Employment Allowance, simply go to Employment Allowance Eligibility.

Posted byVictoria ClarkeinHMRCPayroll Software

HMRC - No Late Payment fees for up to 3 days late

Employers are not to be issued automatic penalties for late submissions of up to 3 days .

HMRC have announced that they will not penalise employers for filing delays of up to 3 days. They have decided that late payment fees will continue to be risk assessed rather than automatic.

It is important to note that this does not mean that there is any change to the deadlines. FPS submissions must still be submitted on or before the payment date.

Any employer that was issued a late filing penalty between 6 October 2014 and 5 January 2015, and they were less than three days late can appeal online against the penalty.

Any employer with fewer than 50 employees are reminded that PAYE late filing penalties will apply to them from the 6th of March.

HMRC have advised that they will review the operation of the changes to the PAYE penalties by the 5th of April 2016.

Posted byNiamh ShortallinHMRCPayroll Software

HMRC Scheduled Upgrade - Easter Monday

Monday 6 April 02:00 – 18:00

Due to a scheduled upgrade you will experience a delay in receiving your online acknowledgement to PAYE End of Year submissions made using HMRC and commercial software between 02:00 and 18:00 on Monday 6 April. Your acknowledgement will be sent once the service is restored. Please do not attempt to resubmit your submission. HMRC apologises for any inconvenience this may cause.

Posted byAnn TigheinHMRCPayroll Software