What is real time information payroll reporting?
Answered 17 March 2026
I'll answer this question using the retrieved sources, which provide good coverage of RTI payroll reporting.
Real Time Information (RTI) Payroll Reporting
HMRC Guidance / Practice
Real Time Information (RTI) is the system under which employers report Pay As You Earn (PAYE) and National Insurance contributions (NICs) information to HMRC. It was introduced from April 2013, with some employers participating in a pilot during the 2012–13 tax year.
Key features of RTI:
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Timing of reporting: Under RTI, employers report earnings, PAYE and NICs information to HMRC on or before the time they pay their employees, rather than completing an annual return at the end of the tax year.
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Electronic submission: As part of the payroll process, payroll software collects the relevant information and sends it to HMRC electronically.
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Submission types: Employers report by submitting a Full Payment Submission (FPS) and/or an Employers Payment Summary (EPS).
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Replacement of annual returns: RTI replaced the previous system of annual returns. From 2013–14, forms P14 and P35 (the employer annual return) were no longer required for most employers, being retained only for those exempt from online filing from 2014–15 onwards.
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NICs calculation unchanged: The introduction of RTI did not change the way NICs are calculated and deducted.
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Record-keeping obligations remain: Employers are still required to prepare and maintain a deduction working sheet (or equivalent) as required under Para 6(1) of Schedule 4 to the Social Security (Contributions) Regulations 2001.
In practice:
RTI is typically operated through standard payroll software (e.g. Moneysoft), which sends reporting information to HMRC automatically. Employers may also operate RTI through agents or accountants acting on their behalf.
Citation sources
From April 2013, HMRC introduced reporting of Pay As You Earn (PAYE) and National Insurance contributions (NICs) in “Real Time”, known as Real Time Information (RTI). Some employers started operating under RTI as part of a pilot during the 2012 to 2013 tax year. Others were given later migration dates. For more information about the pilot (see NIM11510). Under RTI, employers report earnings, PAYE and NICs information to HMRC on or before the time they pay their employees instead of completing an
Introduction 1. This appeal concerns the application of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (“CJRS”) for employers who furloughed their employees during the coronavirus pandemic. 2. The issue in this appeal is the amount of CJRS support payments an employer can claim. Specifically, it is concerned with whether the furloughed employee should be treated as a fixed rate employee and, further, whether a pay increase first reported in a Real Time Information (“RTI”) PAYE return on 29 March 2020 was
At the end of each tax year the employer must complete form P14 or substitute for each employee whose earnings reached the National Insurance Lower Earnings Limit (LEL). This is a summary of the information the employer has recorded throughout the year on each P11. Employers only need to record the total amount of SMP, SAP, SPP, and ShPP paid and, if appropriate, NICs compensation recovered. From the 2013-14 tax year employers started reporting their PAYE payroll information through Real Time In
Form P35 employer annual return is where the employer lists the details of all their employees on form P35 and the amount of Income Tax and NICs the employer has deducted from each of employee. Employers need to record the total amount of SMP, SAP, SPP, and ShPP recovered and also the total amount of SMP, SAP, SPP, and ShPP NIC compensation recovered. From the 2013-14 tax year employers started reporting their PAYE payroll information through Real Time Information (RTI) by submitting a Full Paym