The impact of bank holidays on reporting deadlines
15 April 2019
In 2019 Good Friday falls on 19 April with Easter Monday being 22 April. For many, particularly those who work in retail, hospitality and care sectors, these remain working days, however, they are not banking days and so payments will likely be made on different days to counter this.
The April edition of the Employer Bulletin provides a reminder of the impact this could have when making a Full Payment Submission (FPS).
‘Reporting payroll when your normal payday falls on a non-banking day
The date you pay your employees will usually be agreed when they begin working for you. Typically, this could be at the end of a calendar month or on Friday each week.
It is essential that you report when you pay your employees on time and use the right payment date when doing so. Remember if you use an incorrect payment date, this could impact on your employees’ financial situation, including any income-related benefits, such as Universal Credit, so it is important that you send accurate reports to HMRC on time or as soon as you are able to do so.
However, there may be occasions, when you pay your employees at a different time and not on the agreed day or date. This can arise when the regular payment date falls on a non-banking day (i.e. on a Saturday or Sunday or on a Bank Holiday).
If so, a payment reporting easement applies to ensure that this payment is treated correctly for tax purposes. The date you should enter on your Full Payment Submission (FPS) will depend on when you actually pay your employees and whether this is earlier or later than their normal payday.
Easter 2019
You may not be able to pay your employees on their regular payday during the Easter Holidays in April this year as there will be four consecutive non-banking days (19 April to 22 April 2019 inclusive).
If you would normally have paid your employees on any one of those dates, but instead will pay them early on the last working day before the Bank Holidays; then you must report your normal pay date on your FPS, for example:
Paying early
When a regular payday falls on a non-banking day, but payment is made on the last working day before the regular payday.
|
Regular date of payment
|
Non-banking date |
Actual date of payment (or earlier*)
|
Payment date you use on your FPS
|
|---|---|---|---|
|
19 April 2019 |
19 April 2019 |
18 April 2019 |
19 April 2019 |
|
20 April 2019 |
20 April 2019 |
18 April 2019 |
20 April 2019 |
|
21 April 2019 |
21 April 2019 |
18 April 2019 |
21 April 2019 |
|
22 April 2019 |
22 April 2019 |
18 April 2019 |
22 April 2019 |
Remember you can report these payments early in advance of the actual payment date, but we [HMRC] recommend you don’t submit your FPS too early – as you might need to correct it if information changes, for example, an employee leaves or there is a change in an employee’s tax code.
All other payments you make on regular paydays that fall on banking days and the deductions due must be reported on or before the date of payment to your employees.’
The Employer Bulletin also details the dates to use when making payments later rather than earlier and the article can be read in full at GOV.UK.