Staff holiday planner: ditch spreadsheets for good
It’s the last week of May. The holiday requests are already coming in: two people want the same week in August, someone’s put in for half-term in October and your office manager has just forwarded an email asking about the bank holidays. You open the holiday planner. There are three versions of it. One says […]
HMRC multifactor authentication for agents: What it means for your practice and how to prepare
Key takeaways Multifactor authentication (MFA) is being added to all HMRC agent accounts during 2026. Early opt-in activation is possible, or you can wait until it’s switched on for all accounts in later 2026. Web sign-in for your agent services account (ASA) and online services account (OSA) are affected, but not things like sign-in for […]
Summer rostering checklist for managers
When the rota works, nobody notices. When it doesn’t, everyone does. June is when the summer staffing problem tends to surface. School holiday dates are now fixed. Employees are starting to book flights. And the manager responsible for the staff rota is realising they haven’t set up the framework to handle what’s coming. A summer […]
The MTD quarterly countdown: A practice guide
Making Tax Digital (MTD) was first announced back in 2015, with Income Tax the first planned inclusion. History shows things didn’t run quite to plan. But now, here we are over a decade later: the clock is ticking down to 7 August, the first-ever quarterly update deadline for Income Tax. For most accountancy or bookkeeping […]
How to Pay International Employees: A Simple Guide
The ability to hire talent from anywhere in the world can give your business a competitive advantage, but it also comes with navigating local regulations and tax laws. As with any employee, it’s vital to ensure you’re paying your international employees accurately and on time every payroll cycle. Performing payroll across borders might seem daunting, […]
Your first MTD quarterly update: The countdown has begun (7 August 2026)
Key Takeaways The first quarterly update under Making Tax Digital for Income Tax is due by 7 August 2026. The month-long window for quarterly update submission opened for taxpayers on 25 June, at the earliest, although for most taxpayers the window effectively opens 6 July. You can’t submit a quarterly update without digital records, so […]
AI Tools for UK Employers
Payroll fraud prevention is one of the most overlooked disciplines in UK business finance. Not because organisations don’t take fraud seriously, but because payroll fraud rarely looks like fraud when it starts. It looks like a small discrepancy. An approved overtime entry that seems slightly high. A pay rate that changed without a clear record […]
Payrolling benefits in kind: What’s changing from April 2027 and April 2028
Key Takeaways HMRC has confirmed payrolling benefits in kind is becoming mandatory in two phases: from 6 April 2027 for certain kinds, and from 6 April 2028 for most others. Loans and employer-provided accommodation stay outside the mandatory rules for now. For most BiKs, taxes move from an estimated tax-code adjustment to a real-time deduction […]
Zero-hours Contract Holiday Pay: A UK Employers Guide
Holiday pay rules for irregular workers are one of the most misunderstood areas of UK employment law. So it’s no surprise that SMEs find the legislation complicated. But it’s not because business owners aren’t trying to get it right. The rules changed in April 2024. Many of the most-visited government pages still carry outdated information […]
New legal requirements for private landlords in 2026 and beyond
Key Takeaways The Renters’ Rights Act brought the biggest shake-up to private home rental in England in decades—and is still being rolled out. Awaab’s Law will soon be applied to private housing, and introduces hazard categories and timelines for action. The Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS) has simplified the number of hazards—and you […]