(Or: The One Report HMRC Wants More Than a Cup of Tea)
If payroll had a main character, it would be the FPS — the Full Payment Submission.
It’s the report HMRC obsesses over.
The golden child.
The one you must file correctly unless you enjoy penalty letters and mild panic.
Let’s break it down without the jargon, stress, or tears — just good humour and clear answers (the Love Payroll way).
🧾 So… What Is an FPS?
An FPS (Full Payment Submission) is the report you send to HMRC every time you pay your employees.
Yes, every time.
Weekly, fortnightly, monthly, or whenever Trevor asks for an advance — HMRC wants to hear about it.
It tells HMRC everything they need to know about the pay period, including:
✔ Gross pay
✔ Tax
✔ National Insurance
✔ Student loans
✔ Pensions
✔ Starters & leavers
✔ Statutory payments (SMP, SPP, SSP, etc.)
✔ And any other deductions they’ve decided to monitor this year
If it affects pay? It goes in the FPS.
⏰ When Do You Send It?
HMRC’s rule is beautifully simple:
👉 On or before the date you pay your employees.
Not “end of the week.”
Not “when I remember.”
Not “when the software behaves.”
On or before payday.
And here’s the key bit from HMRC:
🎄 If you pay employees early (e.g., Christmas), you MUST still report the usual contractual payday in the FPS.
(Yes, even if you pay them on the 20th, you report the 25th.)
HMRC loves consistency almost as much as it loves three-letter acronyms.
❗ Important FPS Facts Employers Often Miss
✔ You must submit an FPS even if an employee earns too little to pay tax or NI
Even someone earning £10 that week still needs to be included.
✔ If you don’t pay anyone in a whole tax month…
You send an EPS (Employer Payment Summary) to tell HMRC there were no payments.
If you don’t, HMRC assumes you’re late, and suddenly you’re pen pals.
✔ If you make a mistake?
You can send a corrected FPS.
Just don’t ignore it and hope for the best.
HMRC never forgets.
✔ Late FPS = potential penalties
HMRC won’t send a Christmas card — just a letter asking why you’re late.
😬 Why FPS Matters So Much
The FPS feeds into a LOT of things:
- HMRC tax calculations
- Student loan repayments
- Universal Credit
- Tax codes
- NI records
- State pension contributions
If the FPS is wrong, it can affect everything from an employee’s benefits to their tax bill — and guess who they call first?
(Hint: not HMRC.)
❤️ The Love Payroll Bit
At Love Payroll Limited, we treat the FPS like the VIP report it is.
We make sure every FPS is:
✔ Accurate
✔ Complete
✔ Submitted on or before payday
✔ Compliant with HMRC’s Real Time Information rules
✔ Corrected quickly if anything changes
No errors.
No stress.
No “why is HMRC saying we didn’t file when we DID?” meltdowns.
We take care of the reporting so you can take care of your business — and your employees get paid properly, on time, every time.
With us, the FPS goes from “Scary HMRC Thing” to “Sorted. Done. Easy.”
