HMRC will not impose PAYE filing penalties for short delays from March 2015
17 February 2015
The announcement confirms that this easement will apply from 6 March 2015, which will be of immediate benefit to employers with less than 50 employers, for whom late filling penalties will begin from 6 March.
For larger employers who may already have been issued a late filing penalty notice but who missed the deadline within 3 days, are being advised to appeal the penalty notice by using the “Other” box and add “Return filed within 3 days” within the Appeal a Penalty process of their (or their agents) PAYE online account. Penalties can also be appealed in writing. An employer has 30 days in which to appeal.
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CIPP comment The CIPP fully support this announcement which will go a long way to removing an unnecessary burden for employers who have sought to be compliant and yet failed by a short margin. Removing these employers from the Penalty & Appeal process will go a long way to improving the experiences of reporting PAYE returns in in real time for employers and their agents. |
The announcement also notifies that in addition to this measure and to prevent unnecessary penalties being issued, HMRC will be closing around 15,000 PAYE schemes next month that have not made a PAYE report since April 2013 and which appear to have ceased.
HMRC will be writing to the affected schemes to tell them about the planned closure and what to do if they are, or should be, operating PAYE.