Payroll

This article is intended to give a balanced view of payroll software versus payroll services. In the UK, the markets for payroll software and service co-exist and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future.

With the ever-increasing benefit costs for company cars for both the employee and the employer, and the new rules for Optional Remuneration Arrangements (OpRA), is a company car as cost-effective as it once was?

Globalisation is a word synonymous with the rise of industry. However, recently we may have heard it thrown around a boardroom alongside the other generic buzzwords, and as such something about it becomes disjointed and bereft of purpose. In reality, globalisation is a powerful force – something that should be cultivated and respected in the corporate world.

During Christmas and the associated holiday season, payroll managers experience some annual adjustments and events. Simon Parsons takes us through some of the festive benefits – and the associated tax implications.

Ring out the old, ring in the new! We thought 2017 was a busy year for the UK with the introduction of the Apprenticeship Levy and OpRA impacting salary sacrifice, flexible benefits systems and cash option benefit items such as Company Cars. HMRC introduced a plethora of changes which indirectly impacted employers with dynamic coding (yet continue to issue over 7 million P800 tax underpayment/overpayment letters) and an ability to not be able to calculate a predictive annual salary especially when a one-off bonus was paid. Now bank interest is being notified directly and numerous challenges to multi-tax codes are being issued to employers.

The payroll industry is fundamentally no different to any other in that success is typically delivered relevant to the quality of the individuals providing a service. As such, attracting and retaining the right people is critical. The job market has changed significantly over the last twenty years and the pace of change continues to be even faster. People displaying the right attitude and aptitude is appearing to be more important than those with just job skills and experience.

A question recently landed on my desk. It was not the first time and will unlikely be the last. It asked:

The terms artificial intelligence and robotics are often used synonymously but are quite different, albeit complementary, in their application. Robotics, in simple terms, means process automation - using technology to remove human intervention in some of the lower value add activities such as information keying, data analysis and performing complex calculations.

Effective from 1st January 2019, The Irish Revenue Commissioners (or Revenue) are set to introduce the biggest change to PAYE reporting since 1944, in the form of PAYE Modernisation / Real Time Reporting (RTR).

Increasingly within global organisations we see that individuals have increasing international activity throughout a business’ empire with differing national fiscal obligations. Impact on employees and compliance with a variety of national fiscal government obligations brings into play significant complexities. Some will be available within Payroll Software or service, whereas others, a little more obscure, may require special handling. For UK Payroll, there are a variety of variants (to the normal) Pay As You Earn (PAYE) obligations.

Traditionally in a relay, the fastest team member goes last, with the second fastest giving the team a good start at the front. The other two run or swim in the middle section of the race. A smooth baton changeover is usually seen as essential to a good race – and is often where it is won or lost.