Tasks to be Performed Prior to RTI

Employers are required to perform the following key tasks prior to using RTI processing:

• Data Improvement - This involves cleansing of existing employee data and is a key requirement before any RTI data can be submitted to HMRC. Employers are expected to ensure that the data they have on all current employees as of April 2013, is as accurate as possible. This data includes name, address, gender, date of birth, and tax code. To assist this process, HMRC alerts employers to any data discrepancies such as invalid NI numbers, or missing or incomplete biographical data.

• Payroll Alignment - The HMRC requires all employers to go through a payroll alignment exercise before they start sending RTI payment returns. The employee data maintained by employers is likely to be more current than HMRC’s records. The alignment exercise updates HMRC records with the latest employee data from the employers. Each employer must provide an extract of all individuals who are employed within a particular PAYE scheme in the current tax year, including those who have left since the start of the tax year. This process needs to be run only once, prior to the first RTI returns.