Lichfield accountant advises local employers to prepare for the biggest PAYE reform since 1944

Inspired Accountants, who have offices in Lichfield and Leicester, are advising local employers to get up to speed with HMRC’s new PAYE Real Time Information reporting.

From 6 April 2013 employers and payroll bureaus will be required to send HMRC information about PAYE deductions as they are made, as opposed to the current annual basis. This is one of the biggest changes to the PAYE system since it was introduced in 1944 and means an end to the current P35 and P14 procedures.

Commenting on the changes, Paul Bulzacchelli of Inspired Accountants said: “RTI reporting will become an integral part of an employer’s normal payroll activities. They will need to ensure when they run their payroll, their software will gather the appropriate information required by HMRC.” Paul went on to advise: “If you make payments via a payroll bureau or accountant you should discuss with them any necessary changes you need to make to your PAYE processes and ensure that they are RTI-ready.

“Alternatively, if you run your own payroll you will need to review your payroll procedures and assess your payroll software to ensure it is capable of processing and submitting RTI data.

“If you do not currently use payroll software, you will need to take steps to ensure that you are able to submit data to HMRC electronically by the deadline.”

To manage the new RTI requirements employers will need to hold specific data for each employee in accordance with HMRC’s guidelines and provide substantive training for everyone involved in processing payroll.

Inspired Accountants have produced a free factsheet on the RTI changes detailing why RTI is being introduced, how the changes will affect employers and what employers should be doing now in preparation and in going forward with the new PAYE process.