This guide gives you the payment deadlines for PAYE Settlement Agreements (PSA) and tells you about your payment deadlines options.
If you are looking for guidance on how to make your monthly or quarterly PAYE payments please see the section 'More useful links' at the end of this page.
You may be charged penalties if you do not make your PSA payment on time and in full.
On this page:
Your cleared payment must reach HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC's) bank account no later than 22 October. Where 22 October falls on a weekend or bank holiday, you must ensure that your payment arrives no later than the last bank working day before 22 October, unless you make payment using the Faster Payment Service. Before making a payment you should contact your bank or building society to confirm the services available to you, any daily value limits and latest cut off times for making a payment.
Bank working days are Monday to Friday excluding bank holidays.
Your cheque payment must reach HMRC no later than 19 October.
If you pay late, interest will be charged.
When you make a payment to HMRC it is important that you use the right reference. This makes sure your payment reaches your account and that you won't get reminders after you've paid.
To pay your PSA you will need to use the reference number on the payslip that HMRC sends you. For example, XA123456789012
Please do not use your PAYE Accounts Office reference to make your payment, as HMRC will not be able to identify your PSA payment and you will continue to receive reminders even though you have paid.
If you do not have your PSA reference number please contact the office that is dealing with your application for advice.
Make sure you enter your reference number with no spaces between the characters or your payment may take longer to reach your account.
If you are signed up for HMRC's PAYE Online for employers service you can set up a Direct Debit to collect your PSA payments.
HMRC will only ever collect the amount you ask them to by Direct Debit.
HMRC recommends that you pay by Direct Debit because:
Find out about the Direct Debit Guarantee
To sign-up for HMRC's PAYE online for employers service go to the Welcome to Online Services page on the HMRC website.
Once registered you can start setting up Direct Debit payments right away - you don't have to wait for the Activation PIN which is needed to file your tax return online. However, the service must be activated within 28 days to ensure you have access to Direct Debit online next time you want to make a payment so please make sure that you activate the service when you receive your PIN.
The first time that you set up a Direct Debit payment with us you need to allow at least five bank working days before the date you wish to make your payment. This is to allow enough time for your bank or building society to set up a Direct Debit Instruction so that payments can be collected by HMRC. You only need to allow at least three bank working days once the Direct Debit Instruction is in place Bank working days are Monday to Friday excluding bank holidays. If you haven't allowed enough time for your payment to be collected by Direct Debit please use one of the other electronic payment methods described in this guide.
Please note that it may be up to 36 hours before you can see the details of the a Direct Debit payment which you have set up online.
To be able to set up a Direct Debit online you must be able to authorise Direct Debits from the bank/building society account that you intend to make payments from.
If you are an agent you must be an authorised signatory on your client's bank account to set up a Direct Debit Instruction (DDI) online on their behalf.
Note: If you pay your monthly or quarterly PAYE by Direct Debit please do not add your PSA payment to this amount, as the PSA payment will not be identified and you will continue to receive reminders even though you have paid. When paying your PSA by Direct Debit please use your PSA reference number as shown on the payslip HMRC sent you.
To set up a Direct Debit Instruction from the HMRC home page:
You only need to set up another Direct Debit Instruction during a subsequent visit if you want payments to come out of a different bank/building society account. If you are paying from the same bank account please set up further payments by:
Your Direct Debit payment will appear on your bank statement with the description 'HMRC NDDS'.
You can amend or cancel a Direct Debit payment that you have set up online up to three bank working days before the payment date.
More about PAYE/National Insurance contributions payment deadlines and interest charges
If you have a debit or credit card from a UK card issuer, you can pay your PSA over the internet using the BillPay service provided by Santander Corporate Banking.
If you wish to pay by credit card a non-refundable transaction fee of 1.4 per cent will be added to the charge. HMRC does not accept American Express or Diners Club cards.
A BillPay payment takes three banking days to reach HMRC. Banking days are Monday to Friday excluding Bank holidays.
Make a debit or credit payment now (Opens new window)
To avoid interest charges and penalties on late payments HMRC provides guidance to help you decide when to make your payments.
You can use your bank or building society services to pay by:
To pay your PSA using any of these payment methods you'll need to set up the payment details with your bank. You'll need to give them:
This is a service that has been introduced by the banking industry for sending online or telephone banking payments on the same or next day, providing the value of the payment does not exceed the value limit set by the sending bank.
More about the Faster Payments Service
Information about Faster Payment limits (Opens new window)
More about PAYE/National Insurance contributions payment deadlines and interest charges
Remember, you may be charged a penalty if your payment is not received by HMRC by the agreed deadline date.
If your bank or building society offers the Bank Giro service you can make a PSA payment at your own bank branch by cheque or cash. This is more efficient and secure than sending a payment by post.
If paying this way please:
Please allow at least three bank working days for your payment to reach HMRC. Bank working days are Monday to Friday excluding bank holidays.
When paying by Bank Giro please only use an official HMRC payslip. HMRC payslips contain the correct HMRC bank account information and ensures payment reaches your account on time.
You can make a PSA payment at the Post Office by cheque, cash or debit card without charge. This is more efficient and secure than sending a payment by post.
If paying at the Post Office this way
Please allow at least three bank working days for your payment to reach them. Bank working days are Monday to Friday excluding bank holidays.
More about PAYE/National Insurance contributions payment deadlines and interest charges
HMRC recommends that you pay electronically using one of the methods covered in this guide. If you use the right reference number electronic payments are generally more efficient and secure than sending cheques in the post.
If you do need to pay by post please:
Please allow at least three working days for the payment to reach HMRC. This allows for any delays in the post outside of HMRC's control.
If you do not have a pre-addressed HMRC envelope please send your payment
to:
HM Revenue & Customs
Bradford
BD98 1YY
HMRC will accept a postdated cheque:
HMRC have automated the way they deal with payments sent by post. So you need to send a covering letter with your post dated cheque. Otherwise HMRC won't know the cheque is postdated and will present it straight away.
More about PAYE/National Insurance contributions payment deadlines and interest charges
Employers such as government departments and health authorities who have an account with the Government Banking Service (GBS) can use the GBS online service. This will transfer the funds direct to HMRC's GBS bank account. Provided you initiate payment within the time specified by GBS HMRC will receive payment on the same day.
Please take care if you need to enter HMRC's bank account details. If you make a mistake there may be a delay before your record is credited or your payment may not be received at all.
You will need to provide your penalty reference number with your payment. Please do not use your Accounts Office reference to make your payment, as the penalty payment will not be identified and you will continue to be received reminders even though you have paid.
Make sure you enter your reference number with no spaces between the characters or it could lead to delays in updating your account.
If you do not have your PSA reference number please contact the office that is dealing with your PSA application for advice.
More about PAYE/National Insurance contributions payment deadlines and interest charges
If you have made your payment electronically using one of the methods covered in this guide, you can confirm from your own bank or building society statement that payment has cleared your account.
If send your payment by post you will need to send a letter with your payment if you want a receipt. Please don't write on your on your payslip as they are processed automatically.
HMRC recommends that you pay your PSA electronically using one of the methods covered in this guide. However, If you are paying by post and you don't have a payslip you should send these details with your payment:
You should use the contact details described in the 'Payments
by post' section of this guide.
Payments by post
PAYE/Class 1 National Insurance contributions
What happens if you can't pay
Payments and deadlines
Class 1A National Insurance
