- National Insurance (NI) increase: as of April 2025, new HR laws have come into effect, and employer national insurance contributions (NICs) have increased to 15% on salaries above £5,000.
- Student loan changes: the threshold for paying back student loans for Plan 1, Plan 2, and Plan 5 has increased from April 2025 until April 2026.
- National Living Wage (NLW) and National Minimum Wage (NMW): in April 2025, rates increased for all age groups.
- Spring Budget 2025: in March, the Spring Forecast announced that planned tax rises were to go ahead, and business relief rates would be reduced.
- Mandatory payrolling of Benefits in Kind: the government has announced that, from April 2026, employers will have to report and pay Income Tax and Class 1A NICs in real-time on the majority of BiKs.
Fully-managed vs. part-managed payroll
One of the first decisions you’ll need to make when choosing a payroll service provider is how extensive you want the support to be. Essentially, businesses can choose between either fully-managed or part-managed payroll.
Here’s a quick summary of them both:
Fully-managed payroll
Every single aspect of your payroll is outsourced to your selected provider, encompassing everything from employee BACS payments to P60s. Some providers let you assign an employee to double check pay runs before they are submitted, but clients have little involvement.
Part-managed payroll
The processes are split up, with some of your payroll processes managed in-house while others are outsourced. Usually, the more complex, time-consuming processes like end of year filing or HMRC reporting get outsourced. Simpler day-to-day tasks like submitting pay-runs are actioned in-house.
