In this section:
Everything you need to get started can be accessed from this page.
Your new employer registration letter will provide you with two very important numbers - an Accounts Office reference and a Pay As You Earn (PAYE) reference. This is the only notification you will receive, so HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) recommends that you keep this letter in a safe place.
You must use your Accounts Office reference when making payments and contacting HMRC about payments. You should use your Employer PAYE reference in all other contacts with HMRC and on all your payroll records.
If you haven't yet registered as an employer you can find out more in the guide 'How to register as an employer' - see the link in the section of this guide 'First steps to payroll'.
On this page:
As an employer you have a responsibility to deduct PAYE and National Insurance contributions (NICs) from your employees' pay, to give them a written pay statement and to keep adequate records of how you have done this.
Pay and deductions: the basics
How to register as an employer
There are many ways to run your payroll. HMRC strongly recommends you use an electronic payroll system. It's much easier than getting to grips with a manual system and you're much less likely to make mistakes. There are several free options available, including HMRC's Basic PAYE Tools, which are available to download from the HMRC website.
Almost all employers must send some of their key payroll information to HMRC online. Post is no longer an option for this information in all but a few exceptional situations. You should register for PAYE Online straight away rather than waiting until you need to send information to HMRC online. This is a separate registration process which you do in addition to registering with HMRC as an employer. You must carry out both registrations.
How to enrol for PAYE Online
if you're not able to use the online tax registration service
This can seem like quite a daunting task when you are new to payroll. But if you choose an electronic payroll package you will find it much easier.
The following guides will help you through your first payday.
Taking on a new employee - first steps
Paying an employee for the first time on the Business Link website (Opens new window)
The guide below is particularly useful and tailored to employers who have chosen to use the HMRC Basic PAYE tools P11 Calculator to calculate their payroll.
Download a guide on paying someone for the first time (PDF 6.2MB)
If you use a payroll package or HMRC's free P11 calculator, then most record keeping requirements will be met by the payroll records these create.
But you will also need to keep records for those employees for whom you do not need to deduct PAYE or NICs, for instance because their earnings aren't sufficient.
After you have run your weekly/monthly/annual payroll you must pay the tax and National Insurance to HMRC by a set date. If you do make any late payments of PAYE tax or NICs, late payment penalties and interest can be charged.
How to pay PAYE/Class 1 National Insurance contributions
PAYE/National Insurance payments and deadlines
You can now view details of payments you have made and amounts that you owe, using:
Viewing your PAYE payments and liabilities online
Using Business Tax Dashboard as an employer
Things such as employment contracts, pay, absences and holiday entitlement, the rights of workers and employers in the workplace are all important areas for a new employer to get right.
There's lots of information and tools to help you with these subjects in the 'Employment and skills' section of the Business Link website.
Employment & skills on the Business Link website (Opens new window)
As you take on employees you may come across other pay related matters such as making sure you pay the national minimum wage, or paying sick pay. HMRC recommends that you check out the various payroll tools that are available on both the Business Link and HMRC websites to help you handle different situations as they arise.
You can also find other tools which may be useful to employers in the Business Link Tools directory.
Tools directory on the Business Link website (Opens new window)
The HMRC New Employer Helpline is available as a supplementary source of help.
'My New Business' is an area on the Business Link website aimed at people who are employing people for the first time (along with those starting a business, setting up a business for the first time, or who are running a very new business). It is a new area that customers can personalise, providing them with a single point of access to business focused guidance, information and tools.
Find interactive e-learning on PAYE for employers on the Business Link website (Opens new window)
HMRC has reduced the amount of information it posts to employers by replacing it with online guidance and downloadable applications.
HMRC strongly recommends that you register for their employer email alert service so that they can remind you when the latest information, including each edition of the Employer Bulletin, is made available online.
HMRC publishes the Employer Bulletin three times a year. It is designed to give employers and their agents the latest information about payroll topics and other issues that may affect them. It also provides pointers to new procedures and initiatives which may be of interest and contains direct links to more detailed information allowing you to explore topics further.
It is in a handy, accessible format that you can either download and view or print off in magazine format if you do not want to read it on screen.
You can sign up for a tax deadline email alert on the Business Link website which is tailored to your business. This will provide reminder alerts for the tax deadlines that apply to your business and is based on your answers at the registration process. This is in addition to the employer email alert service offered by HMRC.
Tax deadline email alerts on the Business Link website (Opens new window)
HMRC offers support and advice to help you get your tax right, saving you time and money. For more information and booking details, visit the 'Business Education and Support Team' pages.
