Lengthen an employee's pay frequency

You can give employees a longer pay frequency at the start of the tax year, or at any time if tax periods don't overlap.

If you've processed a payment in a given tax period, you can't process another within the same period using a different pay frequency.

Follow the steps below to check when you can lengthen an employee's pay frequency, and how to do it.

 NOTE: A tax calendar is useful when checking tax periods. You can find these in our tax week and tax month calendar article.

The ideal time to change pay frequency is at the start of a new tax year, before you process any payments. If you need to change this during the tax year, use the tables below to check when you can make the change.

 NOTE: If you lengthen the pay frequency of any employees who are in a pension scheme, take note of how pensions can be affected.  

When you can change an employee's pay frequency from weekly to monthly

Weekly to monthly example

When you can change an employee's pay frequency from fortnightly to monthly

Fortnightly to monthly example

When you can change an employee's pay frequency from four weekly to monthly

Four weekly to monthly example

When you can change an employee's pay frequency from fortnightly to four weekly

Fortnightly to four weekly example

When you can change an employee's pay frequency from weekly to four weekly or fortnightly

Check the weeks that fall into the next processing period. If the last updated date falls within that period, you can't process the employee.

What to do if you have overlapping pay periods

If you can't process a new frequency due to an overlapping tax period, the following options are available:

Continue processing at the old pay frequency

Continue to process the existing frequency, and plan the frequency change for the next time tax periods don't overlap. 

Wait until the new tax year

The best time to change pay frequency is at the start of the new tax year before you process any periods. This avoids having overlapping tax periods to consider.

Roll back and reprocess

To go ahead with the frequency change despite an overlapping period, use rollback and reprocess the payments as below. 

When you reprocess a new frequency, tax and NI are likely to change compared to when you first processed it. This is due to the calculations changing due to the new frequency. 

1. Print new payslips for any periods you're rolling back, so that you can refer back to the values during the steps below.
2. Rollback any periods that you’ve updated into the new pay period. For help with doing this, visit the how to use the rollback option article.
3. Open the employee's record and click the Employment tab.
4. Set their new pay frequency and click Save, then Close.
5. Reprocess the original gross payment, plus the gross pay for the new pay period, using the longer pay frequency.
    NOTE: Check the pension implications section below before you continue to Step 6. 
   
6. Set up a post tax and post NI deduction and assign it to the employee. Visit the set up deductions article for help with doing this.
7. Process the net amount that you already paid the employee on the new deduction.
8. Provide the employee with a replacement payslip.
9. Update records then submit a full payment submission (FPS) adjustment.
   

If an error prevents you from submitting an FPS adjustment, wait until you process the next period instead. When you submit the FPS for the next period, your software includes year to date totals for each employee.

Pension implications

When you follow the overlapping periods process on employees with a pension scheme, you need to process their pension contributions correctly.

Check if the original payment on the old frequency has pension contributions. If it does and you've paid them to the provider, you need to account for this when you process the weekly and monthly payments together.

Contact your pension provider if you need advice on the pension contributions due on the payments you reprocess. Once you calculate the correct contributions, enter them to your software as a fixed contribution.

Change the pay frequency for an individual employee

1. Double-click the required employee then click the Employment tab.
2. From the Payment Frequency drop-down list, select the required payment frequency.
3. Click Yes then click Save then click Close.

Change the pay frequency for multiple employees

To change the pay frequency for a group of employees, use Global Changes.

1. On the Employee List, select the required employees.
2. Click Tasks then click Global Changes.
3. Click Assign Employee(s) a new then click Pay Period.
4. From the Select a new employee pay period drop-down list, select the required pay frequency.
5. Click OK then click Yes then click OK.