Import employees using an FPS file

Summary

How to import employees into Sage Payroll using an FPS file.

Description

You may have used another payroll software to pay your employees. It's likely you'll have submitted a Full Payment Submission (FPS) to HMRC each time you paid them.

The FPS includes a record of your employee details. You can import this information into Sage Payroll. It creates your employee records. If you have many employees, importing them can save you lots of time.

NOTE: This process can also be carried out after you have set up the payroll.

Resolution

When importing employees from an FPS file, use the most recent file available. This is to ensure your employee information is as up-to-date as possible.

You'll need the following information:

Your company's auto-enrolment staging date
Your pension scheme information
Your employee's auto-enrolment status information

NOTE: The FPS file needs to be in a .xml format and must be no bigger than 25MB.

Importing leavers >

You may want to reconcile employees who left this year during your Year End process. We recommend the following approach:

If you have already done an FPS import:

Do an FPS import for each leaver employee you wish to reconcile.

From Settings, select Import Employees

If you haven't done an FPS Import:

First, use the Manually Migrate option to enter your leaver employees.
Then do an FPS Import for your active employees. You can do this from Settings, then Import Employees.

For more information, read more on how to manually migrate your payroll data.

Create your FPS file >

Each time you complete a pay run in your old payroll software, you must submit an FPS to HMRC. The process for creating your FPS file varies depending on your old payroll software.

For example:

In Sage 50 Payroll, you create your FPS from the Payroll navigation bar. Select Full Payment Submission.

Find your FPS file >

If you didn't use a Sage product and need help finding your most recent FPS file, refer to your existing provider.

If you're using Sage 50 Payroll:

From e-Submissions select FPS Viewer.
Select the FPS you want to export then Export XML.

TIP: You can find more detailed instructions about 50 Payroll. Read accessing decrypted FPS files (opens in new tab).

Finding your most recent FPS file:

To find your most recent submission for Sage 50 Payroll the filename is SgeFPS-<YEAR>-<MONTH>-<DAY>-<HOUR>-<MINUTE>-<SECONDS>.xml.

For example: SgeFPS-2021-02-03-13-22-05.xml

Import your FPS file >

When you first open Sage Payroll you have three ways to set up your company. To begin the process of importing your FPS, select Import FPS.

If you can't find your FPS file, if it's in the wrong format or if the file is too big, refer to the Find your FPS file section above.

Follow the steps as instructed, selecting Next, Confirm and Complete Import as required.

NOTE: Not all fields in the FPS file will import.

Migrate only Employee Details:

During the import process, you can choose to:

Migrate your employee details only
Not import any of their year-to-date values
This is worth considering if you are migrating your employees at the start of a new tax year.

Import multiple FPS files >

You may have employees included on different Full Payment Submissions to HMRC. For example, if they had different pay frequencies. You may need to import more than one FPS file.

To do this:
From the FPS import - employee information screen, select the link in the confirmation message.

This starts the import process again.

The option is also in the Settings tab. Select Import FPS File.

Check and update your employee information

The final stage of the FPS import process is to review the imported employees and add any information not included in the import.

CAUTION: You must update your imported employees with a start date and information from the sections below. Do this before processing a pay run.

To help you do this, we've created a checklist that links you to the relevant area of Sage Payroll.

Employee details >

The import process doesn’t include addresses or employee start date. Addresses and start date aren’t part of FPS information.

To enter employee addresses:

Select the Employees tab.
Select an employee from the list.
In the Contact Details section, enter the employee address.
In the Employment Details section, enter the employee start date.
Select Save.

Repeat the steps for each employee.

Company Directors >

An employee may have become a director during the current tax year. You need to update their Directors NIC values in their opening balances tab. You can get these values from your previous payroll software.

You need to check their:

Director status is correct
Preferred calculation method is correct

Check director status and calculation method:

Select the Employees tab.
Select the Director from the employee list.
Within the Current Tax Details section be sure to tick Is a Director.
Set the Directorship Started date as appropriate.
Set the Preferred calc method to the appropriate calculation method.

Find out more about the 2 methods of calculating Directors National Insurance. Read the article Directors' National Insurance.

Pay days >

This is when and how often you want to pay your employees.

To set this up, for each pay schedule that you use for the employees you've imported:

Go to the Settings tab. Select Calendar Settings.
Select the relevant calendar, then complete the following information:

Pay Day	Choose the day of the week you want to pay your employees.
Pay On	Monthly only. Choose one of the following options: Same day of the month – If you want to pay your employees on the same date each month. Last day of the month – If you want to pay your employees on the last working day of each month.
First Pay Run	From the calendar, select the date you want to first pay your employees. You can only choose dates for the day you selected. For Monthly calendars, select the first month you would like to pay your employees. You must set your payroll calendar date for the period after your imported FPS file.
Avoid Public Holidays and Weekends	Whenever a payday falls on a public holiday or weekend, the pay date defaults to the previous working day.

Save your changes.

Opening balances >

These are the values held on the employee record, from your previous software. Check they match the employee values from the previous software.

TIP: An employee may have become a director during the current tax year. You need to update their Directors NIC values in their opening balances tab. You can get these values from your previous payroll software.

To check these values, for each employee you've imported:

From the Employees tab, select the employee you want to check then Edit.

From the Opening Balances tab, check the following information is correct:

Taxable Pay This Employment	The employee’s taxable gross pay received so far this tax year. This is for this employment including any statutory payment values received. If the employee started work during this tax year, this value is for the current employment only. You should add the P45 value to the Started During This Tax Year section.
Tax This Employment	The amount of tax paid to date by the employee in this tax year. If the employee started during the tax year, this value is for the current employment only. You should add the P45 value to the Started During This Tax Year section.
NI Category	The employee’s national insurance (NI) category. You can record up to three NI categories, if necessary. An employee may have had multiple NI categories in the current tax year. Make sure to select their current NI category in “Current Tax Details”. Find this in the Employee Details tab.
NICable Earnings	The employee’s total gross pay for national insurance (NI) to date. Unless the employee has received any payments not subject to NI, this should be the same as the total gross pay.
Total EE NI Paid	Total national insurance (NI) paid by the employee to date this tax year for the current NI category.
Total ER NI Paid	Total national insurance (NI) paid by the employer on the employee’s behalf. This is to date this tax year for the current NI category. You get this value by subtracting the employees NI from the total NI.
Earnings at LEL	The employee’s earnings up to the Lower Earnings limit.
Earnings LEL to PT	The employee’s earning above the Lower Earning Limit (LEL) and up to the Primary Threshold (PT).
Earnings PT to UEL	The employee’s earnings above the Primary Threshold (PT) and up to the Upper Earnings Limit (UEL).

Previous employment values >

You may have new employees that have worked elsewhere in the current tax year. You must include this information.

To enter this, for each applicable employee you've imported:

From the Employees tab, select the employee you want to check.
Scroll down to the Previous Tax Details section.

Employee Declaration: P45

If the employee had a previous employer in this tax year and has provided you with the P45 Part 3, choose this option.
Then enter the following additional information:

Leaving Date – The date the employee left their previous employment in this tax year
Tax Code – The employee’s tax code from the previous payroll system
Total Pay to Date – Their total taxable pay to date. This is from their previous employment during this tax year
Calculated P11 Tax – Their total tax recorded. This is from their previous employment during this tax year

Employee Declaration: P46

If the employee started working for you during this tax year and completed a P46, choose this option.

Leaving Date – The date the employee left their previous employment in this tax year
Tax Code – The employee’s tax code from the previous payroll system

Statutory pay recovery compensation >

Enter this for employees child-related statutory absence payments in the current tax year:

From the Migrate Payroll Data - Employer Values screen. Enter the amount recovered so far in the current tax year in the relevant boxes.
Save your changes.

Working patterns >

If your employees do not work Monday to Friday, you must specify when they work before processing a pay run.

To enter this, for each applicable employee you've imported:

From the Employees tab, select the employee you want to check then Edit.
Select the Working Patterns tab. Choose one of the following options from the Working Pattern Type drop-down list:
- Monday – Friday – if the employee works a standard Monday – Friday week
- Custom 1 Week – if the employee’s working pattern repeats weekly
- Custom 2 Weeks – if the working pattern repeats every 2 weeks
- Custom 3 Weeks – if the working pattern repeats every 3 weeks
- Custom 4 Weeks – if the working pattern repeats every 4 weeks
In the Week Starting On calendar, specify the Sunday of the week on which you want this working pattern to start.

TIP: A working pattern must always begin on a Sunday.
Select the days of each of the weeks in the custom pattern that are working days for this employee.
Save your changes.

Student loan deductions >

If imported employees have an active student loan they need to make repayments. Enter this information on their employee records.

For each applicable employee:

From the Employees tab, select the employee you want to update then Edit.
From the Opening Balances tab, select the Has paid student loan repayments in this tax year check box. Enter the total value of these repayments for the tax year to date.
Save your changes.

Set up employer pensions >

You may have employees that are members of a pension scheme that you haven't yet set up in Sage Payroll. You need to set the pension scheme up.

From the Pensions tab, confirm your staging date and add your pension scheme details. If you aren't sure what to enter here, contact your pension provider.

NOTE: If automatic enrolment applies to your business, you must enter a staging date before processing your first pay run.

For help entering the details of your existing pension scheme, select the appropriate provider:

Assign employees to a pension plan >

Once you've set up the pension scheme, you need to assign any applicable employees to the scheme before processing your next pay run.

It's really important to accurately record your employee's auto-enrolment status and assign them to the correct pension plan. If you do not enter the correct information, it can cause a failed pension submission.

To assign an employee to a pension scheme:

From the Employees tab, select the employee you want to check then Edit.

From the Workplace Pensions tab, select the Pension Provider details as required.

Exclude from Auto Enrolment	If your employee should be excluded from Auto Enrolment, select this check box.
Status	NOTE: Your employee may already be with your company pension scheme. You must enter the correct status. Selecting the wrong status can result in a duplicate enrolment file and failed submissions. Select from the following options, then enter a date that applies to the status: Enrolled: Assessed and assigned to a pension plan. Not Enrolled: Employee hasn't met the eligibility criteria for Auto Enrolment. Employee can choose to opt into a pension scheme. Joined: Employee has chosen to join a pension scheme. They were not auto-enrolled into the pension, as they generally earn less than £6,240 per year or £520 per month. Postponed: Postponed from Auto Enrolment for up to 3 months. After the 3 month period, the employee must join the pension scheme again if they meet the criteria. Opted In: Employee has chosen to opt into a pension scheme. They were not auto-enrolled into the pension, as they generally earn less than £10,000 per year or £833 per month. Opted Out: After Auto Enrolled or Opting In, the employee decided to leave the pension scheme. Ceased Membership: Employee left the pension scheme after the opt-out window had ended. Not Assessed: Employee not yet paid, or the company has not reached the Staging/Duties start date.
Pension Scheme	Select the pension scheme this employee is part of. The available schemes are based on the pensions you have set up for this company.
Pension Plan	Each pension scheme can have different Pension Plans. These can have different contribution rates and tax statuses.
Payment Source	This option is for NEST pensions only. This is where you make the contribution payments to your pension provider from. It's usually a bank or building society.
Pension Provider ID	NOTE: If your employee is already a member of this pension scheme you must enter their provider ID accurately. Your pension provider uses this ID to match your employee with payments you made before using SBC Payroll. This is a unique identifier for an employee on the NEST or Smart pension schemes. Look on your pension provider website. For NEST, it’s known as Application identifier. For Smart, it’s known as External ID.

Save your changes.