The Full Payment Submission (FPS) reports what each employee was paid. The Employer Payment Summary (EPS) reports things that change the employer’s bill as a whole. HMRC combines the two to work out what the employer owes for the month.
When an EPS is needed
Send an EPS for a tax month if any of these apply:
| Situation | What the EPS reports |
|---|---|
| Statutory pay was paid (maternity, paternity, adoption, shared parental, parental bereavement, neonatal care) | the amount recoverable and any compensation |
| The company claims Employment Allowance | the claim (once per tax year, in the first EPS of the year normally) |
| The company is a CIS subcontractor that suffered deductions | CIS deductions to set against PAYE |
| No employees were paid in the tax month | a “no payment” period, so HMRC does not estimate a charge |
| No employees will be paid for one or more future months | a period of inactivity, up to six months ahead |
| The scheme has ceased | the final submission indicator, if not given on the FPS |
| Apprenticeship Levy applies | the levy for the year to date |
If none of these apply, no EPS is needed.
Deadline
The EPS for a tax month must reach HMRC by the 19th of the following tax month (tax months run from the 6th to the 5th). It must arrive before the PAYE payment is due on the 22nd, because it changes what is due.
How it changes the PAYE bill
A company’s FPS for the month shows PAYE, NIC and student loan deductions of £6,200. It paid £2,000 of statutory maternity pay, which it can recover in full as a small employer, plus compensation; the EPS reports both.
| Amount | |
|---|---|
| Liability from FPS | £6,200 |
| SMP recovered (EPS) | –£2,000 |
| Compensation on SMP (EPS) | as calculated by the payroll software |
| Amount due | £6,200 less the EPS reductions |
The recovery percentage and compensation depend on whether the employer qualifies for Small Employers’ Relief. Payroll software calculates them; check the EPS figures against the payslips before submitting.
The Employment Allowance claim
Employment Allowance is claimed on the EPS by answering the eligibility questions in the payroll software, normally at the start of the tax year. It then reduces employer NIC month by month until used up. Eligibility rules and the current amount are set out in Employment Allowance. Keep evidence of how eligibility was checked, especially for connected companies, which share a single allowance.
Checks before sending
- Statutory pay recovered agrees to the statutory payments on the FPS for the period.
- Year-to-date figures on the EPS match the payroll reports (the EPS is cumulative).
- A “no payment” EPS is sent for every month with no pay, if the scheme is not registered as annual.
- Corrections to an earlier month are made by sending an updated EPS with corrected year-to-date figures.
For the per-employee submission, see the FPS submission checklist; for the overall system, PAYE and Real Time Information.