Posts Tagged ‘ Sage Payroll ’

Sage 50 Payroll V19 – Update 2

It is almost time for the new Real Time Information era of Payroll submissions, and as usual I am making sure I run everything in my own payroll first so that I can correctly advise my customers on how to follow the new process.  There is no better way to learn than to do!

So – first things first – have you downloaded your year end legislation pack?  You need to have Sage Cover for this – there is no way around it – if you don’t have cover, please get in touch and I can help you to get it in place.

If, like me, you installed your Sage Payroll Version 19 software back in November when it was released, it is easy to forget that you now need a new version to make sure that all the legislation is correct.  If you go to Help -> About in your software and your version number is 19.00.0016 this means that you have not yet installed the new version. However – if you click on ‘Check for Updates’, Sage will tell you there are no updates – but there are.

You need to download the software from your Payroll Sage Cover area on the Sage website at https://payroll.sage.co.uk – you will need to log in and click on Software Updates and then download your tax year software update.  You need to close all Sage products including Sage 50 and ACT before you do this – and you should also close Excel before installing this update.

Sage Payroll Website

Sage Payroll Website

Once this software is installed, you will find that your version has changed to 19.01.075.  If you go to Help -> Check for Updates now, you will find Update 2 available to download and install.  This MUST BE DONE before you start to do your first RTI submission.  It is a little confusing, as there is no Update 1 because it has been replaced by Update 2, which is not the usual way things are done.

The one thing I did find confusing is that once I had installed Update 2, the version number still said 19.01.075 – but the update had definitely installed.  I always go to the Company->Legislation area for my own peace of mind too and check the legislation matches the new HMRC legislation – you need to make sure that your processing date is 6th April or after otherwise the legislation displayed will still be last year’s.  An easy guide is to check the Emergency Tax Code – if is says 944L you are in the correct year.

2013 2014 Legislation Settings

2013 2014 Legislation Settings

The other confusing thing is that if you check the legislation before doing these two updates the message at the bottom of the screen says ‘The Legislation Settings shown are for the 2013/2014 Tax Year’, even though they are clearly incorrect.  Doing the two updates means that the legislation is now correct.

Summary: Updating Sage 50 Payroll V19 Update 2

  1. Check your version number (Help – About) – if it’s 19.00.0016 you need to do an update
  2. Close Sage, ACT and Excel
  3. Log in to https://payroll.sage.co.uk click on Software Updates and then download and install your tax year software update
  4. In Sage, Help – About shows version has changed to 19.01.075
  5. Help – Check for Updates – download and install Update 2
  6. Check Company->Legislation area for the legislation matching the new HMRC legislation (processing date must be after 6 April, Emergency Tax Code says 944L)

I hope that this article has helped you if you are having problems with your payroll – and good luck with your first RTI submission – although don’t try to do them until after  6am on Saturday 6th April as HMRC are carrying out scheduled maintenance on the Gateway before then – no doubt preparing the decks for all of our new submissions!

**Update as of 23rd April**

Update 3 for Sage 50 Payroll has now also been rolled out.  Following download and installation of this third update your version number should read 19.01.079 .

2013
04/05
CATEGORY
Sage
Sage Payroll
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Real Time Information – RTI – Be prepared

Payroll Submissions are Changing

Between April 2012 and October 2012, everyone who pays employees through the PAYE scheme will receive a letter from the HMRC informing them of the date they are required to start submitting their payroll reports when they pay their employees instead of at the end of each tax year.  This new system is called Real Time Information, or RTI.  Take a  look at this short information video for more information about RTI.

First Steps – Employer Alignment Submission

RTI is not complicated if you use a computerised Payroll system, such as Sage Payroll, but you do need to be prepared and organised before your first submission.  When you receive your letter, you will be asked to perform an Employer Alignment Submission (EAS), which will prove that the system is working and that your system can ‘talk’ to the Inland Revenue systems correctly.

The most important thing with the new system is ensuring your records are accurate and up to date.  Don’t wait for your letter to arrive – if you run your own payroll why not check that your data is correct now, while you have plenty of time to check and correct your information.  Things like the company information need to be accurate – including your Accounts Office reference – which was not required previously.

Check your Employee Records

For employees you need to make sure you have their full name – nick names and initials  are not allowed – full address including postcode,  the correct date of birth, gender and National Insurance number.  This may sound basic, but I have seen many payrolls where the processor puts fake information into the system so that the employee gets paid – then it is hard to remember to go back and change it.

Sage 50 Payroll RTI Edition includes an excellent report which you can print out from your payroll and hand to each employee so that they can check and correct any incorrect information, like missing middle names, so you can be sure that your data is correct.  The Real Time Information Help Centre is also there to guide you through the changes.

I will be writing more blog posts over the next few weeks with more RTI information – but let me leave you with a quote from one of our customers who has already made their first submission as part of the HMRC Pilot scheme – and they used Sage Payroll for 2012/13 for the task.

“Sage Payroll with the RTI update has made the processing of all 16 staff an extremely simple process. I am part of the pilot for trialling RTI and Sage payroll software. Our company went live with our first pay date in November and In order for the transition to be smooth I had ensured that all my personnel data was accurate within Sage Payroll. (A report was available to print and all staff were asked to check their individual details.) On the processing day, there was no extra effort except a couple of clicks to submit live information to HMRC. An email acknowledged receipt and now on to next month.”  Tracy Waumsley, Accounts manager at Encapsulite International Ltd

2012
12/03
CATEGORY
Sage
Sage Instant Payroll
Sage Payroll
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HMRC Gateway scheduled upgrade 3-13 April 2012

For those of you who process your own payroll and  have just processed the last pay period for the year and are ready to think about submitting your year end forms, please take note of this post.

HMRC have recently notified Sage of their scheduled upgrade times during this payroll year end period, and as a result, they strongly recommend that you wait until 14 April or later to make your submission.

If you submit your year end returns between 6pm Tuesday 3 April and 6pm Friday 13 April, your online submission acknowledgement will be delayed. You will not receive your acknowledgement from HMRC until Friday 13 April.

We strongly recommend that you wait until 14 April or later to make your submission. This ensures that you will receive a full acknowledgement from HMRC and Sage Payroll can provide and display your unique correlation ID number for your successful submission.

If you try to submit from 6pm on Tuesday 3 April to 6pm Friday 13 April, Sage Payroll will continually wait for an acknowledgement from HMRC and your software will be unresponsive. If this happens you should press Ctrl+Alt+Del.

If you close your submission without waiting for a response, you will not receive a unique correlation ID for your submission, which is the proof that your submission has been successful. You will receive a generic email response from HMRC on Friday 13 April, which confirms whether your submission was successful. It will not identify the company for which the submission was received  or contain the correlation ID number.

Please remember that you have until 19 May 2012 to submit your year end return to HMRC.

With Sage 50 Payroll, you can make a start on your 2012/2013 processing before you make your submission and complete your year end. Simply make sure that you complete all the steps in the “Starting the 2012/2013 tax year” chapter of your year end guide, then you can get going.

With Sage Instant Payroll, if you need to process in the new tax year, you will need to install a second copy of your software to allow you to continue processing. For more information about how to do this, please contact us at Silicon Bullet.

2012
04/02
CATEGORY
Sage
Sage Instant Payroll
Sage Payroll
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Sage 50 Payroll for the tax year 2012/13

Today I took the new feature course for Sage 50 Payroll for the tax year 2012/13. Instead of calling it Sage 50 Payroll 2012 or Version 18 , they are changing the name to try to make it more obvious which tax year the software is for.  I will be sitting the exam as soon as it is released in early March.

I summarise the new features here: if you would like to know more or see a demonstration of Sage 50 Payroll then please do get in touch.

New Features for Sage 50 Payroll

  • Pre Installation Checklist – if there is any reason why Sage Payroll should not run on your machine, the checklist will highlight this for you. This might happen if you have run out of disk space or have insufficient processing speeds.
  • The user interface has been cleaned up and quite a few of the wizards and forms have been updated to make them easier to use.  Some screens were very busy, with lots of confusing options – these have now been cleaned up without reducing their functionality. The Multi Company tasks area has particularly improved.
  • The support homepage has been added in a similar way to Sage 50 Accounts 2012, which should really help with troubleshooting problems if they occur.
  • Sage 50 Payroll Standard now has import options that were previously only available if you had Sage 50 Payroll Professional. This opens up huge possibilities for improving data import from other sources.
  • The software is ready for the legislation updates that are in the pipeline for the next 3-4 years. Regarding the PAYE Real Time Information (RTI) scheme, which involves sending live data to the HMRC through the year, e-submissions options are being added.  Also the Workplace Pension Reforms which are being phased in over the next 4 years will require much administration with records being kept for employees opting  out and regular reviews, so extra check boxes and areas are being added to help you manage these changes.
  • Salary Sacrifice is being expanded to allow for other schemes apart from just the pension option.  For example, if you participate in the cycle to work scheme or childcare voucher schemes these can now be added and appear on payslips and managed through the new payroll.
  • Sage 50 Payroll and Sage 50 HR can now be synchronised automatically rather than relying on manual intervention from the user.  The old way of linking the two products will still be available but  additional options are now available too.
  • Accountants had requested certain reports to be available as standard rather than having to download them from Sage and install them manually – these have now been added, and in Sage 50 payroll Professional, P32 and P35 client/accountant authorisation reports are now available too.
  • When producing P60s you can now produce a test print so you can check your stationery all lines up correctly, or even send the P60 directly to email if your employees have agreed to this option (Check boxes in each employee record allow you to record the acceptance of email documentation, which was already in the previous versions).

It looks like Sage have reacted to requests from users in bringing in the new features, and they are also thinking ahead to try to help us through the complex new legislation changes being brought in by the HMRC.  I hope you have found this summary of new features useful.

2012
02/28
CATEGORY
Sage
Sage Payroll
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Payroll Year End – Be Prepared

Now Christmas and the New Year are out of the way, we can start thinking about 2012 and being ready for the end of the payroll tax year, as time never ceases to march on.

Sage 50 Payroll 2012/13 is due for release in February, and I will be getting up to date with my training and accreditation so I can share the new features and help you out with a seamless upgrade.

In the meantime, how can you make sure you are all ready for running your payroll year end after 6th April 2012?

Firstly – you will want to make sure you have the appropriate P60 stationery, as although the software will submit your P14s electronically, your employees will still need a P60 showing a summary of their pay and tax for the 2011/2012 tax year.  You can get these printed from your regular stationery supplier, or order Sage stationery through Silicon Bullet.  Remember, the designs change each year so those left over from last year cannot be used. To see details of the designs take a look at the Sage website – but remember to call me for alternative pricing, as we can often offer a discount.

P60 2011/2012 Tax Year - Suitable for E-mail

If you get prior permission from your employees, P60s can be sent electronically via email, in secure password-protected portable document format (PDF).  This was introduced for tax year 2010-11 onwards and could not be done for previous years.  Any substitute P60s are required to carry the text ‘this is a printed copy of an eP60′ within the main body of the form – for more details see Specifications for employer substitute forms P14/P60 by the HMRC.

Secondly – have a read of this Top tips for Payroll Year End free download from Sage. This download gives you hints and tips about your obligations as an employer and tips for preparing for the year end with the relevant dates for submitting forms and payments.

Payroll Year End in Sage 50

Thirdly – if you feel you don’t have the time or experience to manage your year end alone, then why not book some refresher training, or allow us to ‘hold your hand’ while you process your year end? April is always a busy month at Silicon Bullet, so getting an early date in our diary for training is always a good idea.

Hopefully with the links and information I have passed on here you can be fully prepared for your payroll year end, and don’t forget to keep an eye on my posts once I have trained in the 2012 version so I can share all the new features with you.

2012
01/03
CATEGORY
Sage
Sage Payroll
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