National Minimum Wage guide given an overhaul
19 March 2021
HMRC has confirmed that an updated version of the ‘Calculating the Minimum Wage’ guide has been made available for employers to use. An associated blog has been published, which states that the new version of the guidance is simpler to navigate.
The amendments to the guidance mean that additional information has been included relating to:
- Worker eligibility
- Payments and deductions
- Salaried hours work
- Unpaid work
As examples make guidance like this easier to put into practice within operational payroll, further examples have been included to show calculations for errors that are frequently made in relation to the National Minimum Wage (NMW).
There are also links to the new rates to operate from 1 April 2021, which, as a reminder are:
- 23 and over - £8.91 per hour
- 21 – 22 - £8.36 per hour
- 18 to 20 - £6.56 per hour
- Under 18 - £4.62 per hour
- Apprentice - £4.30 per hour
A welcome inclusion is the new checklist, which lists some of the common causes of underpayment of the NMW. There is then a link to the appropriate area of the guidance.
CIPP comment
The CIPP welcomes the updates to guidance, as NMW is one of the areas where employers end up being non-compliant due to a lack of understanding. Anything that can make the rules easier to understand, particularly through the inclusion of examples, will benefit those processing payrolls and the staff that they pay.
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