PAYE End of year Responsibilities - Don't pay the penalty!

If you operate PAYE there are a number of key deadlines approaching which all businesses need to be aware of to avoid potential penalties.

By 19 April 2010 for postal payments and 22 April 2010 for electronic payments you must have paid any outstanding PAYE tax and Class 1 NIC’s over to HMRC.

The key requirement is to file the Employer Annual Return (Form P35) by 19 May 2010 and with few exceptions this must be filed online. If you have not already registered for PAYE online then bear in mind that the registration process can take up to seven days and therefore early registration is recommended.

If you are not required to complete a P35 Return you should notify HM Revenue and Customs in order to avoid reminders and a possible penalty.

By 31 May 2010 you must have given a P60 certificate to each employee who was working for you on the last day of the tax year, (5 April). The P60 summarises the employee’s total pay and deductions for the year.

The next step is to prepare and file the expenses and benefits annual Returns (Forms P11D, P9D and P11D (b) where applicable), and give a copy to the employee. The deadline for this process is 6 July 2010.

Finally on 19 July 2010 for postal payments and 22 July 2010 for electronic payments you must calculate and pay over the Class 1A NIC’s due on the expenses and benefits Returns.

At each of the above deadlines HMRC have a range of interest and penalty charges waiting for those who fail to comply and these can be substantial. It is therefore essential that a business has in place the necessary procedures to ensure compliance and fully understands its responsibilities.

Park Royal Accounting can offer advice and assistance with any aspect of the PAYE End of Year procedures. Please contact Howard Beaumont on 020 3110 2326 or by emailing us at services@parkroyal.org  if you would like to discuss any issues.