Payroll Outsourcing Services for UK Accounting Firms
Keep Client Payroll Running Without Adding Pressure to Your Team
Payroll cannot simply be delayed when other accounting work becomes busy. Weekly, fortnightly and monthly client payrolls can create a continuous workload for practices managing multiple employer clients.
Our payroll outsourcing for accounting firms service provides additional processing capacity around an agreed workflow while your practice retains control of its client relationships and review responsibilities.
Our Success Rate
We’ve provided payroll outsourcing services to thousands of companies across the UK.
What We Need From Your Practice
- Employee details & Previous payroll records
- Pay rates or salary information
- Hours and variable-pay information
- Starter, leaver details & Tax codes or notices
- Pension information where applicable
- Statutory-payment information
- Payroll adjustments & Agreed processing dates
What Your Practice Receives
- Prepared payroll calculations
- Draft payroll reports
- Payslip information
- PAYE and deduction information
- RTI-related payroll data
- Identified payroll queries
- Organised files for review
What Our Payroll Outsourcing Support Can Cover
Payroll Processing
We can support recurring payroll preparation using agreed employee, pay and deduction information provided through your practice. The payroll frequency, cut-off dates and responsibilities should be confirmed before the first processing cycle.
Payslip Preparation
Payslips can be prepared as part of the agreed payroll workflow using the payroll information provided. Your practice can then follow its existing process for checking and distributing final payroll information to clients.
Payroll Year-End Support
Payroll also includes year-end reporting responsibilities. HMRC requires the final FPS or, where appropriate, an EPS to indicate the final payroll report for the tax year. Our support can be structured around the year-end preparation work included within your practice's payroll workflow.
PAYE & RTI Preparation
Employers operating PAYE normally report employee pay and deductions to HMRC through a Full Payment Submission, generally on or before payday. Our service can support the preparation of payroll information required within your existing RTI workflow. Responsibility for making HMRC submissions should be agreed separately during onboarding.
Starters, Leavers & Employee Changes
Payroll information can change throughout the year as employees join, leave or have changes to pay and deductions. Where included within scope, these updates can be processed from accurate information supplied by your practice before the relevant payroll is finalised.
Statutory Pay & Payroll Adjustments
Where relevant information is provided and the work is included in scope, payroll preparation can take account of applicable statutory payments and other payroll adjustments. Anything requiring clarification should be raised through the agreed query process before completion.
How Our Payroll Outsourcing Process Works
Agree the Payroll Scope
We confirm the payroll frequencies, client workload, cut-off dates, required outputs and responsibilities before processing begins.
Provide Payroll Information
Your practice supplies the employee information and payroll changes required for the relevant pay period.
Process & Raise Queries
The agreed payroll work is prepared, with incomplete or unclear information raised before finalisation.
Need More Payroll Capacity?
Tell us about your payroll portfolio, processing frequencies and the type of support your practice requires.
Common Questions About Payroll Outsourcing
Depending on scope, it can include payroll preparation, payslip information, employee changes, statutory-payment information, payroll reports and RTI-related preparation.
Yes. The service can be discussed around a defined group of client payrolls rather than your whole payroll portfolio.
Submission responsibility should be agreed during onboarding. SHRM should not claim automatic HMRC filing for every outsourced payroll engagement unless that arrangement is specifically confirmed.
Payroll frequency and workload should be confirmed during scoping so SHRM can establish whether the requested processing schedule can be supported.
Software requirements should be discussed before the engagement begins. Specific software names should only be published on the website after SHRM has confirmed genuine support for them.
This Payroll Outsourcing page is specifically for UK accounting practices managing payroll for their clients. Businesses seeking payroll support for their own employees should use SHRM's separate Payroll Services page.
