When running payroll, certain submissions must be sent to HMRC to report employee earnings and employer liabilities. The two key types of submissions are:
Full Payment Submission (FPS) – Sent each time you pay employees, reporting earnings, tax, and National Insurance contributions.
Employer Payment Summary (EPS) – Sent when adjustments are needed, such as reclaiming statutory payments or reporting no employees paid.
With PayFit, these submissions are handled automatically, ensuring compliance with HMRC deadlines and reducing manual work.
Additionally, PayFit submits P11D and P11D(b) forms where required.
For more details, see:
Full Payment Submission (FPS)
What is an FPS?
An FPS is a report sent to HMRC every time you pay your employees. It contain details of employee payments, tax, National Insurance contributions, and other deductions.
When is it sent?
The FPS must be received by HMRC on or before payday. PayFit automatically sends the FPS the day before payday, allowing time to correct any errors if needed. Once you run payroll, there's nothing else you need to do. PayFit takes care of the submission.
What does an FPS include?
Employer details (PAYE reference, Accounts Office reference)
Employee details (only those paid in the month)
Gross pay, tax, and National Insurance contributions
Any statutory payments (e.g., maternity pay)
Student loan deductions, pensions, and other adjustments
Early and late reporting
If you run your payroll earlier than usual (e.g., before a holiday), PayFit still sends the FPS on the scheduled date before payday.
If your FPS is late, HMRC may issue a penalty unless you have a valid reason. As PayFit submits your FPS automatically, this should only happen if you run your payroll late, or if HMRC rejects the submission due to an error.
Making changes after submission
If you notice an error in your FPS, you can usually correct the mistake in the next payroll run. For guidance on making corrections in PayFit, please refer to our Help Centre article.
Employer Payment Summary (EPS)
What is an EPS?
An EPS is used to adjust what you owe to HMRC. While the FPS reports employee pay and deductions, an EPS is required when you:
Reclaim statutory payments (e.g., maternity, paternity, adoption, parental bereavement, neonatal, or shared parental leave)
Claim the Employment Allowance (once per tax year)
Reclaim CIS deductions (for limited companies under the Construction Industry Scheme)
Report the Apprenticeship Levy if your total annual pay bill exceeds £3 million
Declare that no employees were paid in a tax month
When is an EPS sent?
PayFit automatically sends an EPS on the 9th of each month (if there are values to report) so that it appears in your HMRC account alongside your FPS on 10th of each month for the same period.
If you run payroll late, PayFit will send the EPS on the same day you run payroll.
The deadline to submit an EPS is the 19th of the following tax month so HMRC can apply any reductions (e.g., statutory pay) to the correct tax month.
If an EPS is submitted late (after the 19th), HMRC applies the credit to the next tax month. This may create a discrepancy in what HMRC expects you to pay, leading to penalties.
Why does an EPS need to be sent every month?
The EPS contains cumulative year-to-date (YTD) values, meaning it includes all adjustments for the full tax year.
That means that if you have values to submit in month 1, an EPS is sent each month to ensure HMRC maintains the correct YTD value.
Reporting no payments to employees for one or more months
If you haven’t paid any employees in a tax month, in PayFit, select a 'period of inactivity' in your HMRC settings to ensure an EPS is sent in place of an FPS.
If you fail to send an EPS, HMRC may estimate what you should pay and apply a penalty charge
After sending an EPS
Once submitted, you can view what you’ve claimed and your updated balance in your HMRC online account on the 10th of each month.
You must pay HMRC by the 22nd (or the 19th if paying by post).
What if you made a mistake?
If you correct an earlier payroll error, PayFit automatically updates the EPS in the next submission, ensuring HMRC always has the correct figures.