Oct 2012
10
How to Prepare for RTI - 5 Key Points
Even if you have not yet enrolled in the RTI scheme or you have not yet received notice of the implementation date for RTI into your organisation, as an employer, enrolment is inevitable.
The earlier you start to prepare for RTI, the smoother the implementation of the new scheme will be on you and your employees.
As an employer it is important that you are prepared. There are steps and procedures that you can implement now in order to prepare.
1. Cleanse current employee data
Audit the data held for all current employees ensuring it complies with the HMRC FPS submission requirement. If this data is incomplete, or requires verification, then initiate this process now eliminating any obstacles in good time before your first FPS submission. This will ensure the majority of data entry is complete prior to implementation date also. Include data capture requests with payslips to ensure employees read the request.
2. Educate current employees
Communicate with employees advising them why it is vital for the personal information held on file to be accurate and complete. Implement procedures to facilitate two way communication between employees and managers, to answer any queries your employees may have and to facilitate the advising of changes to personal information.
3. Prepare and implement formal procedures for new employees
Prepare new employee data request forms to be completed upon commencement of employment and prior to the first payment to the employee. This should encompass all the information HRMC requires you to hold for RTI purposes. Implement this procedure now to identify common errors, issues or shortfall in communication and methods to improve this process.
4. Train the administrative staff that will operate RTI
Develop an in-house training programme to:
- identify training requirements
- develop a suitable training plan
- educate staff on RTI requirements and operation
5. Implement payroll control procedures
Prepare in-house procedures to ensure periodical payroll data is complete and accurate prior to signing off the periodical payroll using reports produced from your payroll software. Identify the data checks or audit procedures that can be made to eliminate errors and the associated reports that your payroll software may be able to produce or allow you to customise to complete this task.
Having a series of control procedures in place will eliminate errors in submission to HMRC under the RTI scheme. The earlier these are implemented the sooner they will become an integral part of the payroll process.
Bright Contracts – Employment contracts and handbooks.
BrightPay – Payroll & Auto Enrolment Software.
