Payslips and RTI Reporting Explained for Employers

If you pay anyone through payroll, including yourself as a company director, you have two linked jobs: giving a clear payslip to the person paid, and reporting the same figures to HMRC in real time. Getting either wrong causes confusion for staff and penalties for the business. This guide explains how payslips and Real Time Information (RTI) reporting work for UK employers in 2026/27.

Key takeaways

• Every employee is entitled to a payslip showing their pay and deductions.
• RTI means you report pay and deductions to HMRC each time you pay someone.
• A Full Payment Submission is normally due on or before payday.
• Year end tasks include final submissions and P60s for employees.
• Check current deadlines and penalty rules on GOV.UK.

What is a payslip?

A payslip is a statement given to an employee each time they are paid. It shows gross pay, deductions such as income tax and National Insurance, any other deductions and the net amount paid. It can be on paper or in electronic form. The law sets out what a payslip must contain, so use payroll software that does it for you. The current requirements are summarised on GOV.UK's payslips page.

What is RTI reporting?

Real Time Information is the system that replaced the old annual employer return. Instead of reporting once a year, employers send information to HMRC every time they pay staff. This lets HMRC keep tax records up to date and helps with benefits such as Universal Credit. You send RTI through payroll software that is compatible with HMRC's systems. Free software exists for smaller employers, and many accountants include it in their payroll service.

The main RTI submissions

Exact dates and any recent changes are on GOV.UK, so check them before you plan your calendar.

Paying HMRC what you owe

Reporting is separate from paying. Each period, you owe HMRC the income tax and National Insurance you deducted from staff and the employer National Insurance due on top, less any allowances you can claim. Electronic payments are normally due by the 22nd of the month following the period, with an earlier date if you pay by post. Missing payment dates can lead to penalties and interest. Our guide to the true cost of an employee shows how these costs add up for an employer.

Worked example (illustrative)

"Nadia", an illustrative example, runs a small limited company and pays herself a modest monthly salary. Each month she runs payroll in her software, which creates a payslip showing gross pay, deductions and net pay. The software then sends an FPS to HMRC on or before payday, using the same figures. At month end it shows how much she owes HMRC, which she pays by the due date. In April she issues her P60 and checks that her final submission was sent. Because every step uses the same data, the payslip, the RTI report and the HMRC payment always agree.

Directors and one person companies

A director paid a salary is normally treated as an employee for payroll purposes. That means a payslip, RTI submissions and payments to HMRC, even where the salary is small. Whether you take a salary, dividends or both is a separate planning decision, covered in our guide to director salary versus dividends. HMRC's employer guidance is on GOV.UK's PAYE for employers page.

What a good payslip shows

A clear payslip lists the pay period and date, gross pay, each deduction with its label, and the net pay. It should also show the figures to date for the tax year where your software provides them. Where there are variable elements, such as overtime or bonuses, showing them separately helps employees check that they have been paid correctly. Giving staff an easy way to ask questions about a payslip avoids small disputes growing into bigger ones.

Starting and leaving employees

New starters and leavers need care. For a new employee you need their personal details, a start date and the information to work out the right tax code. For a leaver, you report the leaving date in the next submission and give them their leaving documents. Mistakes here are a frequent source of incorrect tax codes and complaints from staff. Keep a checklist for both situations, and make sure your payroll software is updated before the next pay run rather than after it.

If you have no employees to pay in a period, you may still need to tell HMRC, for example by sending an Employer Payment Summary, depending on your circumstances. Check the guidance on GOV.UK so you do not receive an automatic late filing notice for a month in which no one was paid.

Common mistakes

• Sending the FPS late. It is due on or before payday in most cases.
• Payslips that do not match the submission. Use one source for both.
• Forgetting the year end. The final submission and P60s are easily missed.
• Mixing up reporting and payment. Sending an FPS does not pay the bill.
• Not keeping records. Keep payroll records for the required period set out on GOV.UK.

If you would rather not run payroll yourself, our payroll service prepares payslips, sends RTI submissions and tells you what to pay and when. Contact us for a no obligation quote.