Paying your PAYE and NIC
2010 sees the introduction of fines for late payment of PAYE and related liabilities.
The first late payment attracts no penalty but these will be applied after the second failure to pay on time in the year. They are calculated as a percentage of the amount paid late (for up to three more late payments) at one per cent of each amount (paid late). Each penalty can rise to as much as four per cent if there are repeated failures, and additional penalties of five per cent can be applied for liabilities unpaid for more than six months, and another five per cent after twelve months So for example, an employer paying a monthly liability of £3,000 but is late by a week paying five of those in the year will incur a penalty of £120.
Electronic payments are due by 22nd of each month, with cheque payments due by 19th, starting in May 2010.
No penalties are payable if employers can demonstrate a ‘reasonable excuse’, but this will no doubt leave the recipient with the prospect of having to deal with an automatically-generated penalty notice.
Our advice is to consider the matter now and be ready to prioritise the payment of PAYE liabilities come the new tax year. You can set up a direct debit to pay HMRC - full details at http://bit.ly/aw1FUn.
