Blogs

For an entrepreneur who has set up a business and had the satisfaction of watching it expand to the point of needing staff, there may be some unexpected hurdles because of the need to be aware of the legal requirements of paying wages and salaries.
 read the full details

The process of managing a payroll is not necessarily the most difficult part of running a business, but it is time consuming and repetitive. The monthly or weekly process starts with the collection of all the information needed, such as the number of hours worked by members of staff, any overtime or bonuses and any sick or holiday leave, as well as any other special cases such as parental leave.
 read the full details

This was the claim made when in late July the government launched a consultation on radical plans to overhaul the PAYE system.

There consultation covers two key elements. The collection of real time information and the centralisation of deductions. Under the proposal HMRC would effectively become the "payroll department" for the country.

One of the key claims is that with the government at the helm it would make it easier to ensure that individuals pay the right tax and that there would be a more accurate
 read the full details

Once again, predictions that managed payroll services will become more complicated have been proved correct by the recent June budget. As from April of 2011 there will be changes to the thresholds for tax credits for families, as well as changes in withdrawal rates and the amount of pay rises that can be ignored for the purpose of entitlement calculation. Changes continue forward to April 2012 as well, so there is no let up in ensuring that you are keeping up with the changes. read the full details

Naturally enough, employees expect to be paid the correct amount at the correct time. It is part of the contract that they provide the time and work, in return for which they receive wages or salary.
 read the full details

Despite worker’s attachment to the idea of a pay cheque, very few employees these days actually receive a physical piece of paper to pay into their bank. Electronic transfer of funds from the employer’s bank account to that of the worker is the method of choice these days, being both convenient and secure.
 read the full details

Announced in the budget there is to be a three-year Employers NI holiday scheme.  The scheme itself starts on the 6th September and applies to new businesses starting after 22 June 2010. read the full details

For small businesses, each area of work is proportionately more costly than for larger companies. This is just as true of payroll, which has statutory requirements and strict deadlines to meet each week or month. This is a constantly repeating task that can be costly in both time and money, not to mention the potential frustration.
 read the full details

Maintaining a payroll for your company can become a serious burden. Each week or month, you have to make sure that you know accurately how many staff are off sick, or on holiday, or on maternity leave. Then there are employees who have worked extra hours, or whose pay has changed for some reason, as well as leavers and new starters.

On top of this, there may be national changes in taxation or national insurance amounts and changes of tax code for individual workers, who have changed circumstances.
 read the full details

For employees, the only point of the payroll process is to make sure that they get paid the correct amount of money on time. For employers, the picture is a little more complicated. All the back room aspects of the payroll that the staff can ignore are tasks that must be completed by the employer.
 read the full details