In this section:
- PAYE end-of-year tasks at a glance
- Finalising form P11 at the end of the tax year
- File your Employer Annual Return online: P35 and P14s
- Avoiding and correcting errors in your Employer Annual Return
- Expenses and benefits at the end of the tax year
- Expenses and benefits at the end of the tax year
- PAYE dates to remember this month
- PAYE Online login page
PAYE end-of-year tasks at a glance
If you operate PAYE (Pay As You Earn) there are a number of key tasks you must complete in the period around the end of the tax year on 5 April.
This guide acts as a checklist - providing an overview of the actions you must take and the deadlines you’ll have to meet.
The key end-of-year requirement for most employers is to file your Employer Annual Return (form P35 and forms P14). Please note that - starting with the 2009-10 return, due by 19 May 2010 – nearly all employers are now required to file their annual return online and cannot use paper forms.
In order to file online you first need to register for our PAYE online service. Completing the registration process can take up to seven days, and there are penalties if you file your annual return late – so don’t leave registering until the last minute.
On this page:
- Deadlines at a glance
- Register for PAYE Online – if you’ve not yet done so
- Set up payroll records for the new tax year
- Finalise your payroll records for the past tax year
- Complete and file your Employer Annual Return
- Notify HMRC if you’re not completing an Employer Annual Return
- Check whether a balancing payment or refund is required
- Give a form P60 to each relevant employee
- Complete and file expenses and benefits forms
- Pay any Class 1A NICs due on expenses and benefits
- More useful links
Deadlines at a glance
| Must be completed by | Task |
|---|---|
| 19 April | Outstanding PAYE tax and Class 1 NICs - postal payments must reach your HMRC Accounts Office |
| 22 April | Outstanding PAYE tax and Class 1 NIC - cleared electronic payments reach HMRC bank account |
| 19 May | File your Employer Annual Return (P14s and P35) |
| 31 May | Give each relevant employee a form P60 |
| 6 July | File expenses and benefits annual return (forms P11D, P9D and P11D(b)) if applicable – give a copy to your employees |
| 19 July | Class 1A NICs – postal payments must reach your HMRC Accounts Office |
| 22 July | Class 1A NICs – cleared electronic payments must reach HMRC bank account |
Register for PAYE Online – if you’ve not yet done so
If you are required to maintain a P11 Deductions Working Sheet or equivalent record for at least one of your employees, you’ll need to file an Employer Annual Return each year. See the later section on this for the detail. However bear in mind that almost all employers must file their return online – and in order to do so you must first register as a user of the PAYE online service.
What to do
If you’re not already registered for PAYE Online, follow the links below to find out more and register. Note that if an agent files part of your return and you file the other part, then you still need to register.
When to do it
HMRC recommends that you register as soon as possible.
The deadline for filing your Employer Annual Return is 19 May, so the very latest that you should register is a week before this. Registering on the HMRC website only takes a matter of minutes, but you’ll need to wait to receive an Activation PIN (also known as an Activation Code) in the post before you can start to file online. This will take up to a week to arrive.
Registering for PAYE Online – further guidance
Set up payroll records for the new tax year
The key task when preparing for the new tax year, which begins on 6 April, is to set up new payroll records for your employees.
In most cases, this will be a form P11 or equivalent record (whether
paper or electronic), but simpler records are permitted for some employees
– follow the first link below for details.
HMRC strongly recommends that you use electronic methods to keep your
payroll records – either commercial payroll software or the P11 Calculator
on your Employer CD-ROM.
Having your payroll records in an electronic format not only means that calculations are done for you automatically, it also makes completing your Employer Annual Return (P35 and P14s) much simpler now that online filing is a requirement for almost all employers.
Setting up payroll records - further guidance
More about choosing a payroll system
Finalise your payroll records for the past tax year
What to do
You must finalise the figures on each employee’s payroll record.
If you’ve had to maintain a form P11 or equivalent record for an employee, then you’ll need the figures it contains in order to complete and file your Employer Annual Return (P35 and P14s).
If you use payroll software or the P11 Calculator on your Employer CD-ROM, the calculations will be done automatically for you. If you still use paper records, you’ll have to add up each employee’s total earnings, tax, NICs, Statutory Payments etc, for the tax year.
When to do it
You can start to finalise your payroll records after your last payday before the tax year ends on 5 April. Your completed Employer Annual Return must reach HMRC by 19 May.
Finalising your payroll records - further guidance
Complete and file your Employer Annual Return
What to do
You must complete and file an Employer Annual Return if you were required to maintain a form P11 or equivalent payroll record for at least one employee during the tax year – whether or not you had to make any deductions of PAYE or NICs from them. If this doesn’t apply to you, see the next section ‘Notify HMRC if you’re not required to complete an Employer Annual Return’.
The Employer Annual Return comprises:
- a form P14 for each employee for whom you were required to maintain a form P11 or equivalent
- one form P35 to summarise the end-of-year payroll totals for all of your employees combined
Depending on your circumstances you may also need to complete and file an Employer Supplementary Return (P38A). This is required if both of the following apply:
- you’re required to submit an Employer Annual Return
- during the tax year you had employees for whom you didn’t have to complete either a form P11 (or equivalent record) or a form P38(S) (which is used when you take on student employees)
When to do it
Your Employer Annual Return (P35 and P14s) must reach HMRC by 19 May. You may be charged a penalty if your return is received later than this.
The requirement to file online
Almost all employers are now required to file their Employer Annual Return online. You may be charged a penalty if you file on paper when required to file online.
Employers who can still file on paper
The only employers who can still file on paper are:
- employers with fewer than 50 employees who cease paying PAYE during the 2009-10 tax year and their complete return is received by 5 April 2010
- employers entitled to operate PAYE using the Simplified Deductions Scheme for personal and domestic employees (using forms P12 and P37) – provided they haven’t previously received a tax–free payment for online filing
- practising members of religious societies or orders whose beliefs are incompatible with the use of electronic methods of communication
- employers who employ someone to provide domestic or personal care or support services at or from the employer’s home subject to a number of conditions – follow the link below for further information
Employers who must file on paper
Limited companies filing a return solely to submit an entry in box 28 of form P35 (‘CIS deductions suffered’) – these returns cannot be filed online
Filing your Employer Annual Return online – further guidance
Guidance for exempt employers – filing your annual return on paper
Notify HMRC if you’re not completing an Employer Annual Return
What to do
If you’re not required to complete an Employer Annual Return because you are not required to maintain a P11 Deductions Working Sheet or equivalent record, you must notify HMRC. Otherwise you may receive reminders or even a penalty. Contact your HMRC office by telephone or by writing to let them know.
When to do it
You should let HMRC know as soon as you know you do not have to maintain any P11s (or equivalent records).
Check whether a balancing payment or refund is required
What to do
Your completed Employer Annual Return shows you the total amount of PAYE tax and Class 1 NICs you should have paid to HMRC for the tax year. Compare this figure against the amount you actually paid to HMRC with your 12 monthly/4 quarterly tax/NICs payments:
- If the amount you’ve paid is higher than it should have been, HMRC will automatically refund the balance to you.
- If the amount you’ve paid is lower than it should have been, you must make a balancing payment (also referred to as a month 13 payment) to HMRC.
When to do it
If you need to make a balancing payment it must reach HMRC by:
- 19 April 2010 for postal payments
- 22 April 2010 for payment by electronic methods
Interest will be charged on any amounts that HMRC doesn’t receive by
these
dates.
Making PAYE payments to HMRC – further guidance
Give a form P60 to each relevant employee
What to do
You must provide a form P60 to each employee who was working for you on the last day of the tax year (5 April) and for whom you were required to maintain a form P11 or equivalent payroll record. The P60 summarises the employee’s total pay and deductions for the year.
You can complete your P60s in two ways:
- electronically, by printing out P60s created (and typically automatically completed for you) by payroll software used to file your Employer Annual Return online, including the P11 Calculator on the Employer CD-ROM or HMRC’s online filing service
- manually, by filling out paper versions of the form
When to do it
You must give your employees their P60s by 31 May.
Complete and file expenses and benefits forms
What to do
You must complete and file either a form P9D or P11D for any employees to whom you've provided expenses and benefits during the tax year.
You must also file a form P11D(b) to declare the overall amount of Class 1A NICs due on any of the expenses and benefits you've provided.
When to do it
All of these forms must reach HMRC by 6 July.
Expenses and benefits at the end of the year - further guidance
Pay any Class 1A NICs due on expenses and benefits
What to do
You must send HMRC any Class 1A NICs that are due on the taxable expenses and benefits you’ve paid or provided.
When to do it
If you’re sending payment by post, it must reach your HMRC Accounts Office by 19 July.
If you’re sending payment by an approved electronic method, your payment must be cleared in HMRC’s bank account by 22 July.
Interest will be charged on amounts not paid by these dates.
Paying Class 1A NICs – further guidance
More useful links
Free HMRC workshop – helps you file online and more – book a place
