A payroll handover has one fixed point: people still expect to be paid correctly and on time while responsibility moves from one process or provider to another. The best handovers start with the next pay date and work backwards. They identify the data, reports, approvals and open issues needed for one continuous pay run.
KKB Accounting’s payroll support starts with three practical details: how many people are paid, how often the payroll runs and when help needs to begin. When arranging payroll, Leicester employers can use this guide to prepare a practical handover pack before the next run, without trying to become payroll technicians.
Fix the handover date and scope first
Write down the last pay period the current arrangement will complete and the first period the new arrangement is expected to handle. Add the usual pay date, the internal date by which changes are approved and the person who has final authority to release the payroll. If these dates are unclear, the rest of the handover cannot be sequenced safely.
Define what “payroll support” includes in your business. It may involve calculating gross-to-net pay, preparing reports, providing payslips, supporting pension information or giving the employer figures to pay. Do not assume that moving the calculation also moves every connected task. Ask both sides to state what they will and will not do for the transition run.
Build an employer information sheet
Create one secure summary containing the employer identity and references needed for payroll, the normal pay frequency, the usual pay date, the bank-payment process and the current contacts. Record which details are confirmed and who confirmed them. Do not put passwords in this sheet.
List every connected system that may affect the run: payroll software, time recording, pension administration, expense or benefit inputs and the place where approved changes arrive. The purpose is not to give everybody access to everything. It is to make sure no input disappears because the new payroll contact did not know it existed.
Prepare the current employee records securely
Agree a secure transfer route before moving employee information. The records should identify the people currently on payroll and the information needed to continue from the last completed run. They should also show starters, leavers, absences, pay changes or other updates that have not yet flowed through a completed payroll.
- Current employee details and payroll identifiers used by the existing system.
- Year-to-date pay, tax and National Insurance values carried forward.
- Tax code notices and other current payroll instructions received.
- Regular pay elements, deductions and approved changes for the next run.
- Leave, sickness and other relevant absence information held for payroll.
- Recent reports, payslip history and the last accepted submission position.
This is sensitive personal information. Limit the transfer to the people who need it, use the agreed secure method and check that the recipient can read the files. A handover is not complete because an encrypted archive exists if the key, format or context needed to use it has been lost.
Keep the HMRC reporting trail intact
An employer’s Full Payment Submission reports employee payments and deductions and should normally reach HMRC on or before the employees’ payday, subject to the stated exceptions. The handover pack should therefore show what was submitted for the last completed run, whether any correction remains open and who will submit the first run after the change.
The PAYE reference and Accounts Office reference need to be available to the authorised payroll process, but access should be granted through the proper route rather than by circulating a business owner’s sign-in details. Keep copies of submission acknowledgements with the payroll reports so the next operator can distinguish a calculation from a report that actually reached HMRC.
Make responsibilities explicit
Even when a provider runs payroll, the employer remains legally responsible for PAYE tasks. Name the employer contact who will supply changes, approve the final figures, arrange payment and respond when information is incomplete.
Also agree who will retain the payroll record. The records to keep include employee pay and deductions, reports and payments to HMRC, leave and sickness, tax code notices and taxable expenses or benefits. A change of provider should not split that history into inaccessible fragments.
Check the first pay run carefully
For the first pay run, compare the opening employee list and carried-forward values with the final reports from the previous arrangement. Check that starters, leavers and approved changes appear once. Compare the draft payroll totals with the inputs before approval, then keep the final reports and submission acknowledgement together.
Do not create a duplicate live submission simply to prove the new setup works. Use the reports, careful checks and the provider’s normal validation process before the real submission. If something does not agree, pause and trace the difference to an input, carried-forward value or setting before authorising payment.
Give KKB Accounting a concise starting brief
When enquiring about an existing payroll arrangement, explain how the payroll is currently run, how many people it covers, how often it runs and when you want support to begin. Mention any open starter, leaver, correction or access issue that could affect the first period.
The KKB Accounting payroll service sets out those starting details. If bookkeeping or accounts support also needs to move, include it in the same enquiry and review the bookkeeping service so the connected work can be discussed in a sensible order.
Frequently asked questions
Can I ask for help with a payroll that is already running?
Yes. Explain the current process, number of people paid, pay-run frequency and intended support start date. Include the next pay date and any unresolved item so KKB Accounting can assess the handover timing.
Who is responsible for PAYE when a payroll provider is used?
The employer remains legally responsible for completing PAYE tasks. The handover should still assign the day-to-day actions clearly, including who supplies changes, approves figures, submits reports and makes payments.
What is the most important document in the handover?
No single file is enough. The crucial link is between the final completed payroll, its year-to-date values, the submission acknowledgement and the employee changes due in the next run.
Start the conversation before the first intended KKB Accounting pay run. A dated handover brief gives enough time to confirm the scope, records and access needed without relying on assumptions close to payday.
This article provides general payroll handover information, not employment-law, tax or financial advice for a particular employer. Check the current rules and the facts of the payroll before acting.
