Do We Send P11Ds to Leavers?

Payroll and reward professionals are busy making their P11D preparations.? Yet, a question I am asked more than any other is ‘are we required to them to employees that have left?’.

So, straight to the legislation for the statutory position:

There are two important parts of The Income Tax PAYE Regulations 2003:

1. Regulation 85 sets the requirements for the P11D (and P11D(b)) submission to HMRC.? This says the employer must submit information to HMRC ‘before 7th July following the end of the tax year’. ?This is what gives us the deadline that they must be received at HMRC on or before 06 July
2. Regulation 94 sets the requirement for the P11D to be given to the employee.? This says that if the employer has an obligation for completion and submission under 85, the same 07 July deadline applies, i.e. on or before 06 July

Yet, does this apply to all employees or only those still in employment?? And, of course, there’s the age-old question about the requirement to provide a duplicate.? It’s all contained in Regulation 94.

A current employee is defined as one in employment on the last day of the tax year to which the P11D related, i.e. 05 April 2023 for P11Ds relating to the 2022/23 tax year.

A current employee must be given their P11D before 07 July (on or before 06 July 2023 for the 2022/23 tax year).

Yet, someone can be a current employee for the purposes of the legislation but also a former employee in the eyes of the employer.

There are ‘two types’ of former employees in the eyes of the employer:

1. An employee that was employed on the 5th of April and left employment before 7 July is regarded in legislation as a current employee.? Therefore, they are still entitled to a P11D.? Regulation 94 (3) says that the employer’s obligation to provide the information is met if the P11D is sent or delivered to the employee’s last known address
2. An employee not employed on the last day of the tax year, i.e. a mid-year leaver, is not a current employee and not automatically entitled to a P11D.? However, 94 (4) says the former employee can request one and the employer has an obligation to provide this before 07 July or within 30 days of receiving the request, whichever is the later.? Note 94 (5) says that the former employee can make this request at any time up to three years after the end of the tax year??

That is the statutory position.? Yet, there is nothing to say that an employer can’t send a P11D to all employees where they have made a return to HMRC, regardless of whether the individual is a current or former employee.

94 (6) says that if an employee not in employment on the last day of the tax year (i.e. a former employee) makes a request for a P11D under 94 (4), they are not entitled to make another request.

The legislation is silent on whether current employees (i.e. employed on the last day of the tax year) can make requests for duplicates.

Best practice in my experience suggests that when P11Ds are sent to employees, this should be accompanied by wording such as ‘this is an important document, please retain’ and ‘requests for duplicates may incur an administration charge’.? This does seem to cut down on the number of requests for duplicates and those P11Ds that have been mislaid suddenly seem to be found!