The PAYE Desktop Viewer (PDV) is an application provided by HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) that allows you to view, search and sort online PAYE (Pay As You Earn) tax codes, notifications and reminders. This guide explains how the PDV works, and how to download and start using it.
On this page:
Changes to the notices that are viewable on PDV from 11 April 2012 mean that the PDV software has had to be updated. Before you can receive the latest versions of these notices you must download and install the new version of PDV on your computer.
Installing this update won't affect any existing PDV data held on your computer, so there's no need to backup your data before updating the PDV software.
Go to the 'Downloading the PDV' section in this guide and select the download link appropriate to your computer/operating system. If you have installed PDV on more than one computer in your organisation, you must update each computer separately.
The PDV is an alternative to HMRC's Data Provisioning Service (DPS) Portal Viewer. PDV provides a range of improvements over DPS and introduces new functionality that was not previously possible to provide.
It is particularly suitable for employers and agents who receive a lot of codes and notices during the year and customers who are already using it have said:
'My first reaction is that it is excellent. Easy to install and use.
Having already lost one of the notices for this year this has already made things better by providing me with the information I needed.'
'The PDV was easy to download, came with very clear instructions and is very easy to use - excellent!'
PDV is an application that you download from HMRC and install on your desktop PC or laptop.
Once you've installed the PDV you can use it to download your notices and PAYE code numbers and view them offline. The notices that the PDV can download and view are:
Please note that because the downloaded information is stored locally on your computer you must be careful to protect it.
HMRC's default software, the DPS Portal Viewer, can still be used, whether or not you choose to use the PDV.
You can:
The first time that you connect to HMRC and download information using PDV, you will get everything previously displayed in DPS since you started to receive codes and notices online. So HMRC recommends that you install PDV and start downloading codes and notices as soon as you can.
Follow the steps in this guide to start using PDV.
Any employer or agent who is registered for PAYE Online can use the PDV to download codes and notices. You may find it particularly useful if you:
If you're a larger employer with several payroll staff, you can install the PDV on as many computers as necessary.
To be able to download the PDV application, your computer needs to be one of the following:
If you have an Apple Mac without Java 6 installed, you can download it from Apple's website. You must then install it and set it as default, using the Java Preferences program found in Applications>Utilities. If Java 6 is already installed you will need to make sure it is the default program - the system default is Java 5 even if you have Java 6 installed.
Download Java 6 from the Apple website (opens new window)
Check whether your Mac meets the required specification on the Apple website (opens new window)
Disclaimer - please read before downloading the PDV.
HMRC cannot accept responsibility for any economic losses, damage and/or
loss to your data or computer systems that may occur as a result of
installing and using the PDV application.
The security of the data held in the PDV is the responsibility of the customer.
Follow the links below to download the PDV application to suit your computer/operating system. If you’re using a broadband connection, it should take less than ten minutes. Slower connections may take considerably longer.
I’ve read the disclaimer and want to download PDV for Windows (ZIP 50MB)
I’ve read the disclaimer and want to download PDV for MAC OS (ZIP 14MB)
I’ve read the disclaimer and want to download PDV for Linux (ZIP 52MB)
After downloading, double-click PDVinstall.exe and follow the on screen instructions to complete the installation.
After downloading, double-click PDVinstall.
After downloading, open a shell and cd to the directory where you downloaded the installer.
At the prompt type: sh ./PDVinstall.bin and follow the installer instructions.
If you selected the default link off your desktop when installing, you can run the application by double-clicking on the icon on your desktop. Otherwise go to the directory where you created a link, or to the directory where you installed the application, and run the shell script called: PAYE_Desktop_Viewer
If you do not have a Java virtual machine installed, you may need to download one from Sun's Java website or contact your OS manufacturer.
Download a Java virtual machine from Sun’s Java website (opens new window)
If you have several payroll staff who need to access the information, you can install the PDV on each computer being used for payroll purposes. You can find out more about multiple users and roles in the section 'Setting up and using the PDV'.
If you intend to install the PDV on more than one machine in your organisation, you must decide who will be the main user - we call that role the Administrator role. Only one Administrator role is allowed in any organisation. To help you decide there is more information in the section below called PDV user roles.
If you intend to install on only one machine that machine must be set up with the Administrator role.
When you use the PDV for the first time, you are presented with the 'Welcome' page that guides you to the 'Application settings' page. There you can set:
You can view or change the above settings at any time via the link on the left hand navigation menu.
You can install the PDV on as many computers as you wish - this is useful if you have several payroll staff that need access to the downloaded payroll information. While there can only ever be one administrator there is no limit on the number of sub administrators you set up.
Whether you are an employer or an agent there are two key PDV roles - Administrator and Sub-administrator.
Administrator - Only the administrator can download notices and PAYE codes. To do so the administrator uses their Government Gateway User ID and Password to log onto HMRC and enters their Employer PAYE Reference (Agents do not have to do this). They can then download all of the notices and PAYE codes for that reference and can use the 'Export' function to create a file of selected codes or notices that they can send to a 'sub-administrator'. The administrator can then 'import' them back once the sub-administrator has dealt with them.
Sub-administrator - Sub-administrators can only work the codes and notices that have been sent to them by an administrator. They cannot log on and download codes and notices from HMRC.
Changes in user roles - Once your computer has PDV installed you cannot change its user role from Administrator to Sub-administrator or vice versa without first uninstalling then downloading and re-installing the PDV application. When you reinstall the application you can designate the new user role. You should always do this from the HMRC website to ensure you have the latest version of the application.
You may need to do this, for example, if your administrator leaves your organisation.
The security of the data downloaded into the PDV database is your responsibility.
The backup/restore functions within the application will help you to carry out routine backups and archives of the database.
If you have trouble installing the PDV and your computer is part of an office network, this could be due to restrictions put in place by your IT provider. Contact your IT helpdesk for advice.
Find contact details for HMRC's Online Services Helpdesk
If you're running MS Windows, you can uninstall the application by:
If you're using a Mac or a PC running Linux:
Important: Uninstalling only removes the application and does not delete the data files you downloaded and saved whilst using PDV. These files include the PDV database and any associated files you created to store the information - remembering that the security of this data is your responsibility.
You must delete these files manually if you want to remove them. You'll find the data files in a folder on your computer called '.hmrc'. This folder may be 'hidden' depending on how your computer has been set up. If you can't find this folder, contact your IT helpdesk.
