Payroll software (12Pay) - The Book-keepers Forum (UK)

ProBowlUK · Senior Member

Payroll software (12Pay)

Wella · Expert

Hi Bob

12Pay does most of it for you, all you have to do is enter the necessary employee details, and pay details.

FYI you can download a free full copy of 12Pay for use on up to three companies (There are some minor restrictions but nothing to stop you using it) so you can play with it yourself.

IMO 12Pay is on of the best.

HTH
Bill

Tom McClelland · Senior Member

Thanks for the kind words, Bill.

Indeed you can play with 12Pay payroll software as much as you like, for free. The main restriction that might impact commercial use is that after 6 processing periods in an employer file (ie weeks or months, usually) you can't get payslips any more, but you can still use the software as a calculator after that. And for continued playing with payslips and reports you could just start another employer file up at that point.

Starting soon, we're even going to allow free users to do direct internet filing to HMRC (P14/P35/P45/P46) using the payroll software. Until now internet filing has been restricted to paying users but we've decided that there is no commercial need for that restriction.

Regarding the original question from PBU, 12Pay payroll includes all PAYE/NI/SxP/attachment tables/rates/rules/bands back to 2006, and uses them as appropriate according to the date of the payroll being processed. Whenever HMRC introduces new tables etc (usually at budget time) we make a new release available to all paying *and* free users which includes the new rates as well as the old ones. The software then automatically switches over to using the new rates as the payrolls being processed go past the trigger date (usually 6th April).

jamesnve · Newbie

IS There any online bookkeeping software and how does it work???

many thanks..\

source:bookkeepingmagic.com/

Marky65 · Guru

Hi Tom

Thanks for your post and especially for mentioning that all users will now benefit from online filing.

Regards

Mark

BackOfficeGroup · Guru

Tom

A quick question...

Does 12pay link up to HMRC to download any notifications and PAYE coding notices? I am a Sage user and an just looking at other systems and am trying to think of questions about what Sage offers that I use to see if other systems do the same??

P

Tom McClelland · Senior Member

Hello, If you have our Payroll Software Bureau licence @£99.80pa+VAT (for unlimited companies each with unlimited employees) you can download P6/P9/SL1/SL2 and the two types of employer notice whose abbreviations I can't remember at this instant.

Susie Sue · Senior Member

Hiya Tom,

Are past years payrolls kept on the system like Sage?

Thanks,

Sue

Tom McClelland · Senior Member

I am afraid that I don't know if we do it "like Sage", because I don't have a copy of any of their products.

12Pay keeps the data for all previous PAYE years directly on file against all employees. So if for example you examine the PAYE tab of an employee you can straight away see P11 lines for past years as well as the current year, and you can get the full payment analysis details of any of those past periods just by double clicking the period in question, regardless of what year it is in.

Likewise, whenever you run a report you get shown a little form for a few seconds with the current year and period number in it. If you change the selected year and period before the timer runs out (the timer stops the moment you click on the form) you'll get a report for the old period you've selected, rather than the current period.

So all previous data is seamlessly visible.

Susie Sue · Senior Member

Lovely - thanks Tom

sakthi · Member

are sage provides any smscontrol system for accounts access. does Sage give you free eBay account tracking system for your account activities on ebay ?.
if you can track your account activities with multiple users by sage then just reply.

semsley · Guru

Sue

I got one of my clients to buy 12 Pay to replace Sage and have found it easy to use and, of course, incredibly cost effective, I think it cost around £59 + VAT. Whereas another client has Sage which next year reaches it's end of support - they've been trying to sell "the latest" version this year with another "free" new version next year for £542. Needless to say I advised client not to do this as the current version is supported and will be upgraded this year as part of their Sagecover for the sum of £342!!! When they have to buy the new version next year I have advised them to switch to 12 Pay, it's really no contest.

Sheila

Susie Sue · Senior Member

Hi Sheila,

I will definately be changing from Sage next year - too expensive. One of my clients needs to change now and at the moment I think it's a toss up between 12pay and Moneysoft - probably 12pay. He nearly fell over when I told him how much Sage was!! Have you used Moneysoft? Which one do you prefer?

Hope you're doing well smile

Edit: PS - my clients support on Sage finished last year. Does this mean I can't do this years payroll year end on it? confuse

-- Edited by Susie Sue on Wednesday 16th of March 2011 09:26:30 PM

semsley · Guru

Fine Sue, and you? How I hate that there is no PM facility on here anymore!!!

I saw one of the accountants I work with today and he uses Moneysoft at his practice, one of my clients use his practice as a payroll bureau and the print outs I get are fine and he's very happy with it, although I've never used it and don't now how much it costs.

If Sage cover has run out - no you won't get the year end disk but I don't think anything major has changed during the last year so you should be able to do a year end and file on line - if not give me a ring or email and I'll sort you out.

Susie Sue · Senior Member

Thanks Sheila - I'll take you up on that if I get stuck.

3magic · Newbie

Hi,thanks for sharing the information here.Really a good discussion is presented here and i appreciate your views here...

-- Edited by 3magic on Tuesday 29th of March 2011 06:23:07 AM

Wella · Expert

According to Sage website, they are sending out the year end packs by the 27 February, so you should get necessary to do your year end stuff.

When I did my payroll qualification it was on Sage Payroll Instant. That was about three years ago. I seem to remember receiving a year end pack with that, which does not require a subscription renewal. I am pretty sure that you can continue using payroll but obviously with out any support if things go wrong with the software/ updates. I think it also means that you would have to manually enter any budget updates to codes and allowances etc.

Might be worth seeing what the pack is all about

Unfortunately because i haven't got a current subscription I cannot access some of the documents but if you have a sage login, and a current subscription, you might be able to find out more

here's a link to the Sage PYE site

https://pye.sage.co.uk/default.aspx?page=76

HTH

Bill

Edited to remove duplicated salutation

-- Edited by Wella on Saturday 25th of February 2012 05:09:31 PM

Rhianrach · Expert

semsley wrote:

If Sage cover has run out - no you won't get the year end disk

This is exactly my dilemna. Our support runs out mid March, I personally want to switch to 12pay as sage are asking way too much money for their software and support, but it appears I need them to complete year end. Is there any other way of completing year end with out paying for support, or could I be sly and sign up for it then cancel after a month biggrin .

Either way I will be getting 12pay and running it along side sage, making sure it's what I want then maybe getting rid of sage next year anyway, I just wouldn't mind saving the business some money if sage's charges can be avoided.

Tom McClelland · Senior Member

If you can export your Sage data into Excel at year end, you can import the figures into 12Pay and file using 12Pay. You just need to rename the Sage columns in Excel to the ones that 12Pay requires. The columns can be in any order but you need our headings. This works best with clients with plenty of employees. If you have lots of 1-2 employee clients it is easier to just key the P11 figures in, which you can also do.

An example spreadsheet of the import file is in Program Files/12Pay payroll/Help.

Rhianrach · Expert

Tom McClelland wrote:
If you can export your Sage data into Excel at year end, you can import the figures into 12Pay and file using 12Pay. You just need to rename the Sage columns in Excel to the ones that 12Pay requires. The columns can be in any order but you need our headings. This works best with clients with plenty of employees. If you have lots of 1-2 employee clients it is easier to just key the P11 figures in, which you can also do.

An example spreadsheet of the import file is in Program Files/12Pay payroll/Help.

That's a good idea and one I'd pondered. It's the whole world of doo-doo I'd be in if anything went wrong that I'm worried about, the fact it's so close to the year end. I'll have to think about it over the weekend, however I can see what you're saying and can't see a problem with it, I would much prefer to be able to stall sage and keep them as a just in case, I like to cover all angles, sort of sit on the fence. smile

Tom McClelland · Senior Member

Of course it is right to be cautious and cover your bases. Don't forget that once you've transferred the data you can print P11/P32/P35 in both pieces of software to compare totals.

Wella · Expert

Hi Steve

I am curious, what do you get at year end/ support from Sage that stops you using their software up to 5 April? Or even after that?

I thought that the point of using payroll software was that it would, at the very least cover the necessary for the current tax year!

Rhianrach · Expert

Hi Bill

To be honest I'm not overly sure, but I've seen and heard on two occasions now that you need the year end disk. I know not what it does as yet, I'm just working on the assumption you need it and you don't get it without support. I think it has something to do with tax rules, it also sounds like a rip-off. Any information on this would be greatly appreciated as I just want to flip over to 12pay.

Rhianrach · Expert

Wella wrote:
According to Sage website, they are sending out the year end packs by the 27 February, so you should get necessary to do your year end stuff.
When I did my payroll qualification it was on Sage Payroll Instant. That was about three years ago. I seem to remember receiving a year end pack with that, which does not require a subscription renewal. I am pretty sure that you can continue using payroll but obviously with out any support if things go wrong with the software/ updates. I think it also means that you would have to manually enter any budget updates to codes and allowances etc.
Might be worth seeing what the pack is all about
Unfortunately because i haven't got a current subscription I cannot access some of the documents but if you have a sage login, and a current subscription, you might be able to find out more
here's a link to the Sage PYE site
https://pye.sage.co.uk/default.aspx?page=76
HTH
Bill
Edited to remove duplicated salutation

-- Edited by Wella on Saturday 25th of February 2012 05:09:31 PM

Thank you, what I might do then is confirm my year end pack has been sent out then cancel the support, then look at switching over.

Thanks again

semsley · Guru

I'm not sure if you need the year end pack it depends on whether they have done anything with the filing software (which they do tend to update and you have to either use the supplied disk or download the updated software from their website). You get this if you have up-to-date sage cover. Also on the disk is any updated legislation but you can change this yourself without the update. I've had an email at my client who uses sage and has sage cover saying the disk are being despatched and this year they are DVDs so god only knows what's on them!!!!!

Rhianrach · Expert

semsley wrote:
I'm not sure if you need the year end pack it depends on whether they have done anything with the filing software (which they do tend to update and you have to either use the supplied disk or download the updated software from their website). You get this if you have up-to-date sage cover. Also on the disk is any updated legislation but you can change this yourself without the update. I've had an email at my client who uses sage and has sage cover saying the disk are being despatched and this year they are DVDs so god only knows what's on them!!!!!

It appears we will be getting it which is good, even though I told them we aren't likely to be requiring their services after their support runs out. This my first time running payroll so I'm not overly sure what happens but I shall find an hour or two to research it fully, all I know for now is I need to run p35 and p14 and submit them and run p60 for the staff but don't know if we have the stationery for that, so it will be a big learning curve, but a valuable one smile

semsley · Guru

Steve

You don't need special forms like you used to from HMRC you can print them direct from Sage (or other payroll software for that matter). Much easier than trying to line them up on the printer so they don't print all over the headings!

The only thing that seems to change with SAGE every year is the software they use to upload the stuff to HMRC. It's really straightforward. Just follow the steps given by SAGE.

Sheila

Rhianrach · Expert

Thanks Sheila, I think I'll manage as long as I tell everyone in the office to leave me alone for an hour or two smile