HMRC has released the latest issue of the 'Employer Bulletin' publication which includes summaries of recent changes and updates that have been announced which are relevant to employers and agents.

The topics covered in the latest edition include the following:

• Employment allowance. The employment allowance of £2,000 per year for all businesses and charities was made available from April 2014. The allowance is offset against the employers Class 1 secondary NICs and can be claimed as part of the normal payroll process through their regular payroll processes. The maximum amount available is capped at £2,000 per year. 725,000 employers across the UK have used the employment allowance to date.
• RTI Penalties. The introduction of new in-year late filing and payment penalties is approaching. Late filing penalties and late payment penalties will commence in October 2014 and April 2015 respectively. Interest has been charged daily from April 2014 on any in-year payments not made by the due date.
• Basic PAYE Tools. The Basic PAYE Tools software for the 2014-15 has been updated. This is an update to the existing version rather than a separate download, so existing users do not need to go to the HMRC website to get the update. Employers should ensure that they are using the latest version (14.1.14168).
• Annual tax summaries. Annual tax summaries for the 2012-13 tax year are currently being prepared and will be sent to taxpayers across the UK in October of this year. The annual tax summary will show individual taxpayers Income Tax and National Insurance Contributions for the previous tax year and will include a table and chart to show how this contributes to different areas of public expenditure, such as health, education and defence. An estimated 24 million UK taxpayers will receive a personalised summary, 4 million more taxpayers than the previous year.