It has been reported that more than 1.4 million employer PAYE schemes are now reporting to HMRC in real time which means that more than 83% pf small to medium sized business and more than 77% of micro employers have started to report PAYE in real time.
HMRC have announced that it will be seeking to extend the temporary relaxation of the new reporting rules for businesses with fewer than 50 employees from October 2013 until April 2014 after listening to stakeholders but this relaxation will come to an end.
This relaxation means that these businesses will still have to report through the new system but can do so once a month rather than every time they pay their employees, which gives those small businesses who pay weekly or more frequently extra time to adjust to the new requirements.
HMRC will continue to work with businesses over the coming months to see if there are any specific circumstances on or before reporting that need to be catered for in the longer term but employer need to plan reporting in real time from April 2014.
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) are already using the PAYE information reported in real time to calculate Universal Credit amounts paid to people in its pathfinder pilot in the North West of England so that the amounts of benefit accurately reflects their level of income.
Ruth Owen, Director General for Personal Tax at HMRC said,  “The roll-out continues to exceed our expectations. I am delighted that 83% of SME’s and 77% of the smallest businesses are already on board. We will now write to the minority of employers who are not, to establish how we can help them meet the requirements of reporting in real time.”