Running payroll

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Reporting to HMRC: EPS

Use your payroll software to send an Employer Payment Summary (EPS) as well as a Full Payment Submission (FPS) if you:

Send an EPS instead of an FPS if you’ve not paid any employees in a tax month.

EPS deadlines

Send an EPS by the 19th of the following tax month for HMRC to apply any reduction (for example statutory pay) on what you’ll owe from your FPS.

The tax month starts on the 6th.

Sending an EPS

To complete and send the EPS, follow your payroll software’s instructions. HMRC has guidance on what to put in each field on an EPS.

Use HMRC’s Basic PAYE Tools if your software cannot send EPS reports.

After you’ve sent your EPS

Once you’ve sent your EPS, you can:

  • view what you’ve claimed and the balance of what you owe on your HMRC online account within 2 days (or by the 14th if you sent the EPS before the 11th)
  • pay HMRC by the 22nd (or the 19th if paying by post)

If you made a mistake in your EPS

If you find any errors in your EPS, send a corrected EPS as soon as possible.

If you do not pay any employees in a tax month

Do not send an FPS. Send an EPS by the 19th after the tax month you did not pay any employees. The tax month starts on the 6th.

HMRC has guidance on what to put in your EPS if you’ve not paid anyone.

If you do not send an EPS, HMRC may:

If you do not pay anyone for a longer period

You can tell HMRC up to a year in advance that you’ll not pay any employees. To do this, enter dates in the ‘Period of inactivity’ fields in your EPS.

View a printable version of the whole guide

Part of Employ someone: step by step

  1. Step 1 Check your business is ready to employ staff

    1. Prepare your business to take on employees

  2. Step 2 Recruit someone

    You need to advertise the role and interview candidates. You can use a recruitment agency to do this or do it yourself.

    1. Find out about recruiting someone yourself on Acas
    2. Find out about using a recruitment agency

    As an employer you must make sure you recruit employees fairly.

    1. Avoid discrimination during recruitment
    2. Make your application process accessible for employees with disabilities or health conditions

  3. and Check they have the right to work in the UK

    1. Find out how to check an applicant's right to work

  4. and Find out if they need a DBS check

    You may need to check someone's criminal record, for example, if they'll be working in healthcare or with children.

    1. Find out if you need a DBS check
    2. How to do a DBS check

  5. Step 3 Check if they need to be put into a workplace pension

    Check if you need to put your employee into a workplace pension scheme:

  6. Step 4 Agree a contract and salary

    When someone accepts a job offer they have a contract with you as their employer.

    1. Check what the National Minimum Wage is for different ages
    2. Check what the National Minimum Wage is for different types of work
    3. Check what to include in a contract
    4. Agree a written statement of employment particulars

  7. Step 5 Tell HMRC about your new employee

    You must tell HMRC about your new employee on or before their first pay day.

    1. Tell HMRC about a new employee
    2. Get their personal details and P45 to work out their tax code
    3. If you don’t have their P45, use HMRC’s ‘starter checklist’
    4. Check what to do when you start paying your employee