DMBM209120 - Payment processing and accounting: irregular payments: post-dated cheques

The majority of this manual will be archived on 30 Apr 2024. If there is content within this manual you use regularly, email hmrcmanualsteam@hmrc.gov.uk to let us know.

The issue of post-dated cheques is effectively a request from the customer for a time to pay arrangement.

Staff are reminded that the acceptance of an unsolicited post-dated cheque (regardless of date) does not mean that a time to pay request has been agreed to. Any post-dated cheque, or cheques, dated within 28 days are accepted without prejudice and will not remove any surcharges, penalties and so on. We would only do this if a customer contacted us before the due date to request time to pay and we agreed that request following discussion and information gathering.

Cheques dated 28 days or less from current date

If the cheque, or cheques, covers a period of 28 days or less you should:

  • process any in-date payments in the usual way
  • hold the remaining payments locally until they can be sent to DMB Banking
  • prepare a pro-forma payslip. The EDP will be the date on the cheque.

Note: Print Payslip will not allow you to prepare payslips for a date more than ten days in advance.

See DMBM209130 for further details on processing post dated cheques.

Cheques dated more than 28 days from current date

Where the cheque, or cheques, covers a period exceeding 28 days:

  • accept any payment, or payments, that becomes in date within seven days of receipt
  • return any other post-dated cheque, or cheques, that falls outside this timescale with a covering letter advising the customer to pay in full, or where they are unable to do so to contact debt management.