Why Should I Outsource My Payroll?

You might think that outsourcing is costly, but it can actually SAVE you money, writes payroll expert Jo Poulter. It also allows you to reclaim valuable time.

As a business owner, there are lots of tasks that you may consider outsourcing to save your time and enable you to focus on the other aspects of running your company. Many businesses choose to outsource their payroll activities – including wage calculations, reporting and tax withholdings – by using an expert payroll service.

These are the top reasons companies choose to outsource their payroll:

To save time

Even for smaller businesses, payroll activities take up a significant amount of time each month and, as there are strict deadlines on reporting, the payroll admin cannot be put off to a time where you are less busy. When you outsource your payroll activities, you will free up your time and avoid getting distracted by them.

An external provider can also recommend the most suitable systems to use for managing your payroll activities, to help streamline your systems and processes across the business.

Improved compliance

The legal and tax requirements for payroll can be complicated, but an expert payroll service will ensure all relevant legislation is complied with, incorporating any regulatory updates. An external payroll service will ensure that employees are paid on time with minimal risk of errors. Also, you won't need to worry about who'll complete the payroll activities when you are on holiday or if you have important meetings.

Payroll expertise

Learning all of the important information about completing payroll activities takes time and there are regular changes you must stay up to date with. There are lots of different areas of payroll to understand, such as expense allowances, holiday premiums, benefits and any other payments that are not part of the employee's salary.

Easier to manage if your business grows

An outsourced payroll service will easily be able to adapt to changes to your workforce if your business grows and you take on more employees. If your business operates from different locations, payroll management works seamlessly across all sites.

Improved security

With strict data protection laws and an increasing level of cybersecurity threats, keeping your employees' data protected is vital. When you outsource your payroll management, your supplier will use the latest technology, including security solutions, to provide a high level of protection to reduce security risks.

How does outsourcing work?

Outsourcing payroll management is a lot easier than most people expect it to be. The first step is to define guidelines and processes for the partnership and to set up an information transfer system. It is also good practice to write up a confidentiality agreement and detail the security policies in place to protect the sensitive information.

Once there is a system in place to share the information, the payroll service can start the payroll management, including compliance, taxes and reporting.

Are there any disadvantages to outsourcing payroll?

The main factor to consider is whether you are happy to lose control of your payroll management by handing it over to an external provider. You might consider the costs of paying for a payroll service to be a disadvantage, but in many cases, you can actually save money by using your own time for activities that drive your business strategy. Or, if you were thinking of employing a payroll employee, you need to consider recruitment, training and ensuring your employees are up to date with the latest legal and tax requirements.

Choosing the right payroll provider for your business is an important decision and you should check that the company has good security measures in place, uses best-in-class technology and that their customer service is high-quality. If your employees cannot easily get answers to their queries, outsourcing could end up causing problems.

Page Kirk is Nottingham-based and provides expert, secure and reliable payroll management services to companies across the UK.

Our payroll team can help you with:

• Making BACS payments through our approved BACS bureau to employees/HMRC. We are regularly assessed to ensure we meet the standards set by the scheme.
• Customised payslips - either e-mailed to employees or accessed via a secure online portal.
• Administration of PAYE, National Insurance, Student Loan deductions, Attachment of Earnings Orders.
• Trusted advice regarding statutory sick pay, statutory maternity and paternity pay.

• Weekly, monthly, or four-weekly payrolls, ensuring all information is submitted to HMRC by the deadlines.
• Submissions to HMRC for Construction Industry Scheme (CIS), to offset CIS tax against PAYE liability.

• Customised reports, summaries and analyses of staff costs.
• Administration of incentive schemes, bonuses, and ex-gratia and termination payments.
• Administration of pension schemes and auto-enrolment; assessing employees to check eligibility to be auto-enrolled; dealing with opt-ins and opt-outs to pension schemes; and uploading data on to a pension scheme portal.

Find out more about the services we offer here, or contact us today to discuss your payroll and we will explain how easy it is to outsource to us. Simply call 0115 955 5500 or email enquiries@pagekirk.co.uk.