Free money from the tax man??? Jacquie Clarke, owner of Adepta Accountants in Norwich, has these tax tips for employers:
For employers, it's a busy time of year at the moment. Not only do you have to start thinking about year end payroll procedures, including P35's and P60's, you also have to consider any taxable benefits that you may have paid to your staff and declare these on P11d's. It's important that you meet the HM Revenue and Customs deadlines for submissions otherwise you're incur penalties.
As a brief reminder, all employees who have been paid this year should be issued with a form P60 no later than 31st May. Your year end summary, along with P14's should be filed with the Revenue by 19th May. Any additional amounts of PAYE and National Insurance due have to be paid before this deadline; 19th May for cheque payments and 22nd May for direct bank payments. Don't forget, that if you employee less than 50 people and file your returns online, the Government will pay you £75 for doing so. It's not often the Government give money away for free so make sure you take advantage!
If all that wasn't enough, any employee who receives benefits and is paid more than £8,500 p.a. also has to be issued with a p11d by 6th July and the National Insurance due on this paid by 19th July. Unless you have specific dispensations in place, all payments reimbursed to staff need to be shown. This often catches employers out as mileage/subsistence are sometimes forgotten. Dispensations are easy to obtain and save a lot of time and hassle. It may be worth thinking of applying for one this year to save you the headache of p11d's in another 12 months.
If in doubt about completing your returns, either contact the Revenue helpline or speak to a professional advisor. There may be some tax saving opportunities to be had regarding the amount you pay your staff so it's worth picking up the phone.
