HMRC’s real time must be ‘fit for purpose’

The Chartered Institute of Payroll Professionals( CIPP) said it is “delighted” that Treasury ministers had listened to their concerns.

The new automatic in-year Pay As You Earn (PAYE) penalties for late filing and late payment and in-year interest (charged on tax and National Insurance Contributions (NICs) that are paid late during the year), were due to start from 6 April 2014.

The revised timetable will see automatic late filing penalties come into force in October, while automatic in-year late payment penalties have been postponed until April 2015.

“This additional time will allow both employers and HMRC to iron out all the teething problems being experienced by employers, particularly around the payment reconciliation process without the fear of financial implications,” said Karen Thomson, Associate Director of Policy, Research & Strategic Visibilityat CIPP.

She said that while the Institute is “supportive of real time information, it has to be fit for purpose”.

Thomson added: “Whilst employers are grappling with queries around what HMRC believes it has received versus what the employer has sent, it was crucial further time was given to sort these issues out.

“The CIPPalso hopes this will allow more time to improve the dashboard employers use to see where payments have been allocated.”

HMRC has worked with the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to ensure that RTI will support the operation of Universal Credit, which brings together means-tested in and out-of-work benefits.

HMRC’s Director General for Personal Tax, Ruth Owen, said:

“The introduction of RTI is going extremely well for the majority of employers but there are still some who need a bit of time to adapt fully to the changes. This additional time will give us the opportunity to ensure that improvements to our internal systems are working, to learn from them and to provide better customer support to employers who need more time to adapt.”