The income tax deduction calculated by the DIY Accounting payroll package is different to the inland revenue CD Rom.

Small differences can occur because the DIY Accounting payroll system has in the past used the revenue manual tax tables whereas the inland revenue employers CD Rom use a percentage calculation. In fact the manual tables jump in pounds and tax tables can increase by four pounds between different look up rates which can create small differences.

In the current financial year many of the financial income tax and national insurance calculations have been changed in the DIY Accounting payroll calculations to a mathematical percentage basis. Differences can still occur where the subject of the calculation is rounded to ignore the pence.

All these differences are minor and immaterial and adjust themselves since tax is calculated on a cumulative basis. HMRC percentage calculations also differ from the calculations using paye look up tables for similar reasons.

Employee gross pay was entered and no national insurance contribution was calculated.

The national insurance contribution table applied is shown in the column to the left of the employees name on the payroll sheet and you will probably see the letter C when because this employee is of working age and not a second employment the national insurance table letter should be A. Check the date for both for this employee which may have been omitted or entered wrongly.

Income tax deducted for my employee who is on a normal tax code was much higher than normal.

The income tax code column to the left of the employees name on the payroll sheet may appear as zero which should show the tax code. To resolve the tax code check the employee starting date has been entered and the numerical value of the tax code in the employees details and the date that tax code should be applied.

When I try to enter wages on the payslips a dialogue box appears with the message that the payslip spreadsheet is protected.

No entries are required to the payslips file. All entries are automated from the payroll file and the protection prevents corruption of the formulae in the payslip file. The entry on the payslip file can be changed by entering the required gross pay on the payroll workbook and the payslip will automatically update itself from there as part of the paye system.

I cannot see any tabs at the bottom of the payroll software workbook.

After entering the employee details navigate to the month in which you wish to enter gross pay by clicking the tab buttons at the bottom of the excel spreadsheet. If you do not see any tabs at the bottom of the sheet you may not be viewing the full sheet. Click the square box at the top of the menu bar to view the full sheet and the tabs should then be visible.

When I open the payslips file I receive an error message saying read only, non repairable error has occurred.

This is likely to have been an interruption during the download process that has corrupted the payslip file. Download the payslip workbook again direct from the confirmation email sent to you after purchase.

We bought the up to 20 employee payroll package and now have 23 employees.

Make a second copy of the payroll software, saved into a separate folder and split the payroll into two parts. Perhaps use one package for one department and the other package for a different department or use one for existing employees and the other for new starters.

Do I purchase a new payroll software package each financial year or can the payroll software be updated for more than one year paye purposes.

The payroll software include that years tax rules to
enable the packages to automate the production of that year tax returns. Each year has new tax rules embedded and being on excel rather than a database then it is necessary to purchase a new package each year.

Does the payroll software automatically generate the amount payable to the inland revenue each month.

The payroll package automatically calculates the income tax and national insurance and collects the information on a paye payments schedule so you know exactly how much to pay each month. The paye calculations also complete all the revenue forms including the P35 annual employers return which is required when you file the paye information with the revenue at the end of the financial year.

The payslip workbook is not automatically updating from the payroll spreadsheet.

The payslip updates automatically and there are no calculations on the payslip file or links out of that file. The most likely cause is that the payslip file was renamed and has broken the links from the payroll file. If you have saved the file after breaking the links by renaming the solution is to download the payslips file again without changing the name.

The calculation of payroll deductions requires a detail-oriented approach and accurate work on the part of the payroll accountant. Payroll is reported through calculating various payroll deductions as well as gross pay in order to come up with a net pay amount. Withheld amounts from employees net pay include Federal, Medicare and Social Security.

FICA are both the company’s and worker’s share of Medicare and Social Security taxes. These are withheld by ½ and federal income tax is withheld from a workers pay as well. A company can be required to pay federal and state unemployment amounts, and withholding county, state and city income tax may also be a requirement in some areas. Worker’s and independent contractors need to be differentiated when amounts are to be withheld, as hiring companies are not required to withhold from independent contractors.

A Trust Fund Recovery Penalty is charged on employers who do not pay the U.S. Government withheld taxes and is enforced by the IRS. Individuals who willfully do not pay, account for or collect the amounts and are determined as responsible for the payout by a 4180 Interview, are assessed the Trust Fund Recovery Penalty which is 100% of what is owed in addition to interest accrued. Whether nonpayment is intentional or accidental, the Trust Fund Recovery Penalty is a substantial hit to an employer’s funds, and it is important for employers to keep records of when withheld payroll taxes are due to be paid.

Unemployment taxes are both state and federal (FUTA and SUTA). Hiring companies are allowed credits of up to 5.4% on State unemployment amounts if they have gained eligibility for the maximum credit, and usually net 0.8% of gross compensation. State rates differ for FUTA based on the base of minimum wage, and companies are only liable for the first $7,000 in an employee’s calendar year of compensation.

Be sure that a detail-oriented approach is used when calculating payroll deductions, and use additional care when scheduling the payment of amounts withheld to avoid unnecessary penalties.

When keeping track of it using journals, there are two journals that are used in this system. A Payroll Journal records it that is due to be paid to employees. When it is time to disburse payments, a Payroll Disbursement Journal records amounts when it is finally paid to employees. Journals must be kept with detailed information on hours worked, amounts to be paid, dates and to which employees. Automating this process makes data entry very simple, and any errors can be caught early rather than searching paper journals to catch mistakes.

Computerized one allows for the printing of hard copy journals as well as payroll ledgers and calculates employee taxes to be withheld automatically with a few simple settings. Paying attention to detail is crucially important, as errors can cause problems for the accounting of your business. Keep individual files for your employees with their time and payroll information in them to make pulling information later an easy task. Be sure to keep a list of your employees and employee numbers handy if you choose to list employees by their number in your accounting payroll.

Employee time sheets are also called payroll source documents, and are required for audit use when accounting payroll. These documents should be put into a document source folder for easy access when requested. The Labor Department is one organization that requests these source documents on an audit basis. It is important to keep documents well organized, whether they are in paper form or computer form. Use software which will allow you to customize your fields to accommodate your particular needs, as well as software that will make it easy for you to transfer your information to other accounting programs.

Executive level pay is based upon company performance. If the performance of a company is not reported in a proper manner, executives make money that far exceeds what the business is capable of and creates a false picture of a company’s performance. This false reporting causes the stock market to balloon by rewarding stock to companies who do not deserve it, and these methods have a bad effect on our economy. Business accounting that honor the GAAP (Generally Accepted Accounting Practices) creates a transparent persona, an air of trust and respect, from the users of their financial statements. Read more