HMRC are asking for comments on the way that penalties are applied.

Employers will not incur penalties for delays of up to three days

Employers will be given a grace period of up to three days to file PAYE information before they incur a fine, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has announced.

HMRC are also reminding employers with less than 50 employees that PAYE late filing penalties will apply to them from 6 March.

Instead of being issued automatically, late payment penalties will continue to be reviewed on a risk-assessed basis.

Filing deadlines will remain the same, which means the employer must file on or before each payment date unless certain situations apply (see 'sending a Full Payment Summary after payday'). 

In February, HMRC launched a consultation to explore the way that they apply penalties when people fail to meet their tax or entitlement obligations. The discussion document asks for comments on the way that penalties are applied, as HMRC begins to deliver more digital services.

Following the consultation, HMRC say that they will review the operation of the changes to the PAYE penalties by 5 April 2016.

Any employer that has received an in-year late filing penalty for the period 6 October to 5 January 2015 and was three days late or less, should appeal online by completing the "other" box and add "return filed within three days."