While the end of the calendar year can bring festivity, celebrations and parties, the end of the financial year can be busy for many companies in regards to the HR/payroll department, ensuring a high level of accuracy and maintaining records in a timely manner. None the less, a smooth transition in to the new year can be achieved by planning ahead and appreciating the simplicity of life such as creating a check list. Feel free to take notes from the list I have created for myself to help me glide into the new year. Update employee's contact information, such as address, email addresses or even national insurance numbers for those who haven't provided you with one, or had a temporary number assigned to them. Remember to keep an eye out for the pension rate changes taking effect from April 2019, as the current rates will increase to 5% employee and 3% employer contributions. Review salary information – As many companies have a new budget for the financial year, they may want to increase some employee's salary. Also be sure to check the national minimum wage is changed from the current tax year to the new tax year. If using Sage 50 payroll, try to get in the habit of using payroll assistant (monthly, not just for year-end), as this automatically check if employees are on the correct wage on their age band. You may also find this link useful: https://www.gov.uk/national-minimum-wage-rates Many may even want to provide the employees with a bonus for all their hard work they have invested into the company. Prepare all P45's/P60, try to go paperless as a new financial year resolution and use email addresses if possible. Ensure the Employment Allowance and Small Employer's Relief is renewed so each company is in receipt of the full benefits available to them. Be sure to find out each companies PAYE balance as they may be due a refund for over payment, or even have an outstanding standing balance. Remember, outstanding balances may incur penalties and/or have interest added to their account per day and they may want to clear all balances starting the new year with a clean slate. While different companies have their own individualised policies and practices, being proactive with the above tasks provides a good place to start in order to have a more manageable year end process. I hope you enjoyed reading my blog and wish you all a great start in to the new year! For more information or advice, please Contact Us. By Jasminara Begum