KB Category: Sage Payroll (Micropay)

RPN Delivering Negative ‘Prev. Er’ figures (incorrectly)

Written by jennie on .

Issue: RPN Delivering negative ‘Prev. Er’ figures (incorrectly).

The payroll operator will usually first notice this as flagged in the Validate Payroll routine: It shows the issue and the recommended resolution as follows:

The suggested resolution is for the payroll operator to edit the figures as required and save the record. This is in fact all that can be done to make this scenario right. We can argue that modernisation was supposed to take all of such edits out of the hands of the payroll operator, and we would be right. And we could worry that the operator does not have easy access to the required information, since they are no longer issued with P45 information and we would also be right. But neither of those are for us to consider. This software is at the mercy of what is delivered by the RPN and we have no control over that. The software works fine when the RPN delivers non negative values, and so we can deduct that the software is working correctly.

Advice To Customers:
If the issue is in the Prev Eer Tax Paid or Prev Eer USC Paid fields, then ask the customer – are they sure that the figure is not supposed to be negative? See note below regarding ‘Scenario when Prev Eer Tax/USC paid can be negative’.

If they are sure that the value is not supposed to be negative, then explain to them that the issue lies within the delivered RPN from ROS. Advise them to edit the Prev Earning fields in question (as suggested by Sage) and change them to the correct figures. Sympathise that we cannot help them to find the correct values to be entered – they will have to press Revenue or the Employee for this information. [We should avoid suggesting what figures should be entered. They will need confirmation from another source to find out what to enter].

Explain (with regard to Prev Earnings) how the Pay/YTD screen works:

  • The ‘This Employer’ fields are the result of the addition of all the ETP records for that employee, it is not imported from the RPN.
  • The ‘Prev. Er’ fields are imported from the RPN and are the total of all previous employments. This figure excludes earnings from the current employer.

Encourage them to run the ‘Validate Payroll’ option during every payroll, to bring to light any such issues. (They are supposed to be doing this anyway). All solutions to ‘Validate Payroll Data Errors’ are listed in Sage KB number 44659.

Suggest to them that Sage have been made aware of this issue and are in discussions with Revenue.

Knock On-Effects of this Issue: If this issue was with the Gross Pay field and had gone un-noticed by the payroll operator, it means the employee’s tax may have been calculated for a period of time on less Gross Pay than it should have been. This may have benefitted the employee tax wise. When the operator enters the correct (positive) Prev Er figure the employee may pay a higher amount of tax for a time until it resolves itself cumulatively. This can be different case by case.

NOTE: Scenario when Prev Tax/USC paid may need to be negative:
Employee works at ‘Employment A’ and earns X amount. Then they leave ‘Employment A’ and work at ‘Employment B’. In their first wage at ‘Employment B’ they receive a tax refund (for whatever reason), but they then leave ‘Employment B’ after that wage. The employee returns to ‘Employment A’. At this point their ‘Prev. Eer’ tax is actually negative, as it only includes the values at ‘Employment B’, and that included a tax refund. This could apply for tax or usc.

A Reminder of How Re-Instating a Leaver used to work Pre – Payroll Modernisation:
Historically, when an operator needed to re-instate an employee the procedure was to take the ‘This Employment’ figure from the Total Pay on the P45 and enter the remainder in the ‘Prev P45’ line:

Year End Dates & Week 53

Written by jennie on .

Based on discussions at the Payroll User Forum in October 2019, I made the following notes.
They are based on the 2019 Year End / 2020 Year Start, but they apply to any year.

 

Sage KBA for Covering the topic of  Week53:

Sage have produced ASK 32326, which covers the Week53 topic, which is very good.

Revenue Preferences:
  1. For weekly payrolls, payments to employees should be on the same day every week – including over Christmas.
  2. Holiday pay for days taken in 2019 need to be paid in the 2019 payroll.
  3. Holiday pay for days taken in 2020 (ie: 2nd/3rd Jan) need to be paid in the 2020 payroll.
  4. Where a company are going to run 3 weeks ahead, ie: Period 51, 52 and another one – the pay date rule applies: If the pay date of the 3rd week is in 2019 then it would be a week 53 in the 2019 system. If the pay date of the 3rd week is in 2020 then it would be week 1 in the 2020 system.
  5. If the company did not plan for 53 pay dates year at the beginning of the year, then they should not be having one.
  6. It is Revenue’s intention to contact any company who process a period 53.


Pay Date Rule:
The pay date rule basically means that if the pay date is a 2019 date then it belongs in the 2019 payroll and if the pay date is a 2020 date then it belongs in the 2020 payroll.
All scenarios are governed by the pay date rule.


Problem Scenario:
I identified the following to the user panel, which is causing confusing pay date scenario:
When the calendar is set at the start of a payroll year, the software calculates the number of periods based on the Period Date, but based on the prominence of the Pay Date field now, the number of periods in a year should actually be calculated by the Pay Date field. (Sage agreed.)

Not having the pay date as the date by which the number of weeks are measured when setting up the calendar, will cause the following problem. This example is of a weekly payroll where the period date is three days before the pay date, on a weekly basis: Period Date: Tuesday 01/01/2019 with Pay Date: Friday 04/01/2019.  It seems to be specific to payrolls where the Period 1 had a period date of 01/01/2019.

If the customer has already done 52 weeks in 2019 then it would be ok to suggest to them that the week with suggested paydate in 2020 system (above), should be processed as Week 1 in 2020 to satisfy Revenue. The customer will be tempted to run the period 53 in 2019 and change the pay date of period 53 to be Tue 31st Dec, but as per discussions at the Payroll Forum – revenue prefer if payroll operators would stick to the same day of the week for pay dates. This reason can be used a leverage to steer the customer in the right direction.

In a payroll where the user always sets the period date the same as the pay date, there are no issues.

At the end of the day we can’t control what the payroll operator does, we can only advise them. In all cases, refer the user back to the Pay Date rule, and ‘Revenue Preferences’ above.

 

CWPS Report Issues after CWPS Update (1st Oct 2019)

Written by jennie on .

Scenario:

After the customer has run their Sage Payroll V22.4 Update and entered their new CWPS ‘Week 1’ payroll (CWPS Week Dated 30/09/2019 – 04/10/2019), they encounter issues with the data that shows in the CWPS Contributions Report.

Symptoms:

The report either shows no data for ‘Pay Week’ 1 (Run Report Week1 – Week1)
Or it shows data at old rates, and for ‘Pay Week’ 39 or 40 (or whichever might be  applicable to that payroll) (Run Report Week1 – Week52)

Cause:

This happens because the new CWPS Calendar was setup after setting the period in question. When you click Set Period – in the background the software grabs the appropriate ‘CWPS’ week number from the CWPS Calendar, based on the ‘Period Date’ field for the period and saves the CWPS data (per timesheet) against the chosen CWPS week number in the CWPS history table. If the new CWPS Calendar is not setup before Set Period, the set period screen will grab the CWPS week number from the ‘Old’ calendar (that being maybe 39 or 40). Some users will notice this in the Set Period screen and will change it themselves. Some wont:

Solution:

As the CWPS week number on the Set Period screen can only be changed at status SOP, the only solution is to:

(Carry out the steps in the order shown below)

  1. Restore back to the previous period EOP (EG: EOP 38)
  2. Check the CWPS Rates are still the new ones. (If they are not – run the update again or change them manually).
  3. Set up the New CWPS Calendar (Start Date 30/09/2019)
  4. Set the period in question (EG: Period 39) making sure that the CWPS Section of the Set Period Screen says ‘Week From: 1’ and ‘Week To: 1’ (If weekly payroll). This may say ‘Week From: 1’ and ‘Week To: 4’ if it’s a monthly payroll.
  5. Clear the CWPS Balances: Click Year End at the top of the screen and then click New Construction Pension Year. Click yes to the message when prompted.
  6. Check CWPS Report (Week 1 – Week 52) to confirm it is blank.
  7. Run Timesheets again.
  8. Run EOP.
  9. Check CWPS Report Again (Week 1 – Week 1) – It should be ok now.

CWPS – New Calendar Year 2020/2021 and Rate Changes (From 1st Oct 2020 – Version 23.4)

Written by jennie on .

The Calendar year for the Construction Workers Pension Scheme changed back in 2019. In previous years it has been a ‘Jan – Dec’ year. From 1st October 2019, it changed to an ‘Oct – Sept’ year. Due to the new CWPS calendar year, the CWPS Rates will be changing annually on the 1st of October.

V23.4 supports those increases to the Construction Workers Pensions Scheme (CWPS) which come in to effect from 1st of October 2020. When installed, the update will immediately apply changes to the necessary rates. If this applies to your payroll, then this update will help you to remain compliant. Please note though, that this update will need to be installed on a particular period so as not to apply the increases too soon.

You will need to carry out the following steps to complete the update:

  1. Choose the Appropriate Period to Run the Update
  2. Backup Your Payroll
  3. Download & Install The Update prior to setting your ‘Applicable Period’
  4. Set up the new CWPS Calendar prior to setting your ‘Applicable Period’
  5. Set your Applicable Period (‘Period Date’ must be on or after 28/09/2020)
  6. Browse The New Rates & Check Categories
  7. Clear the CWPS Balance History
  8. Run your CWPS Report (1-52) to confirm it is blank.
  9. Process Timesheets
  10. Check CWPS Report to confirm rates used are correct.

 

Steps 1-8 are detailed below:

1. Choose the Appropriate Period to Run the Update:

If the change in CWPS rates effect your payroll, then it is imperative that you install the update at the appropriate time. At the moment you install the update, the CWPS Rates will change in your payroll software. As the rate increase is only applicable from 1st of October 2020, ideally you should wait to install the update, until ‘End Of Period’ of your last September payroll. That is, the last September payroll where ‘Pay Date’ is a September 2020 Date (See ‘Pay Date’ in Image Below).

You can check this in advance, by clicking the ‘Company/Payroll’ menu at the top of the screen, and choosing ‘Calendar’. In the example below, as the applicable period is Period 40, it would be appropriate to run the update and set up the new CWPS Calendar at End of Period 39. This way the new rates and new CWPS Calendar will exist before setting the first CWPS Period (CWPS Week1).

Your payroll(s) may differ to this example, so check the calendar in each of your payrolls, before processing timesheets.

 

2. Backup Your Payroll
  • We recommend to take a backup of your payroll data, in your usual manner, before running an update.
  • It may also be advisable to print off your CWPS Report for CWPS Weeks 1-52, prior to making the necessary changes to CWPS, as this report will be cleared later in the process.

 

3. Download & Install The 23.4 Update prior to setting your ‘Applicable Period’:

As per step 1 above, make sure you have chosen the correct moment to install the 23.4 update, as the CWPS Rate changes must not be used until your appropriate period. Once you have identified the moment you need to run the update in, you can click the link below to download the update. Run the update in the usual manner.

Click Here to Download the Sage Payroll Software Update 23.4 (225mb)

 

 

4. Set up the new CWPS Calendar:

In order to comply with the new CWPS calendar year format, you will need to set up a new CWPS calendar. To do this:

  • Click on ‘Company/Payroll’ menu.
  • Choose the ‘Construction Workers Pension’ option.
  • In the window that is presented click on the ‘Calendar’ tab.
  • In here click on the ‘Create New Calendar’ button.
  • Enter the start date of 28/09/2020 (This is the Monday of the first week of the new CWPS calendar).
  • Click ‘Create’
  • Click ‘OK’

 

 

The new Calendar should look like this:

5. Set your Applicable Period:

Set you applicable period number. ensure that your ‘Period Date’ is on or after 28/09/2020. This date (28th Sept) is the start date for the new CWPS Calendar. If your period date is prior to this, your CWPS contributions may not report into the correct period. In the example above, this is period 40. Your applicable period may differ to this.

Note On ‘Set Period’: When you click ‘Set Period’ make sure that the ‘Week To’ and ‘Week From’ fields in the ‘CWPS’ area of the screen are: both equal to ‘1’ if running a weekly payroll, or show From ‘1’ To ‘5’ if running a monthly payroll. If this is not correct, then your CWPS data may report to the incorrect CWPS ‘Pay Week’.

 

 

6. Browse The New Rates & Check Categories:

After you have set the period, browse the CWPS categories & new rates under the ‘Company/Payroll’ menu – ‘Construction Workers Pension’ option. The new rates are listed here.

There are only three Active Categories: POC (Pension Only no DIS), SPB (Pension/Sick Pay) and SPI (Standard Contrib + Industry Additions). Other earlier categories are no longer in use:

It is also advisable to browse your employees, and ensure that they are assigned to the correct category. To do this:

Choose the relevant employee in ‘Employee Details’, Click ‘Deductions’ Tab, Under ‘Construction Worker’s Pension Scheme’ select the correct category from the drop down list. Click Save.

 

7. Clear the CWPS Balance History:
  • From the menu bar at the top of your window, click Year End then click New Construction Pension Year.
  • When you receive the prompt to clear the balances and history, to continue, click Yes.

 

8. Run your CWPS Report (New Year 1-52) to confirm it is blank:
  • Click ‘Other Reports’
  • Choose ‘Construction Pension’ on the left hand side.
  • Click ‘Preview’
  • There should be no data for any ‘Pay Weeks’ in the report.

 

9. Process Timesheets:
  • Once you have carried out steps 1-8 above, you can continue to process your timesheets & do End Of Period as normal.

 

10. Check CWPS Report to confirm rates used are correct:
  • Check your CWPS Report after EOP to view contributions at new rates for CWPS Week1. Ensure the rates are correct before completing CWPS Week1 in your payroll, as if they are not correct, you will need to re-process at the correct rates.

System requirements – Sage Payroll (Micropay) 19/08/2019

Written by Pimbrook Support on .

System requirements – Sage Payroll (Micropay) 19/08/2019

 

This article details the system requirements for installing and operating Sage Payroll (previously known as Micropay). You can also find information about how to check your computer’s specifications.

 

Recommended system requirements

 

Processor speed 2Ghz processor or equivalent.
Operating System The following are supported:

    • Windows 10 November Update version 1511 – 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64).
    • Windows 10 version 1507 – 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64).
    • Windows 8.1 – 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64).
While you can install and run Sage Payroll on Windows 8.0, we recommend you update to Windows 8.1 if you haven’t already done so. Windows 8.1 is a patch release to resolve multiple issues in Windows 8.0.
  • Windows 7 Service Pack 1 – 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64).
  • Microsoft Windows Server 2016 – 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64).
  • Windows Server 2012 – 64-bit (x64).
  • Windows Server 2012 R2 – 64-bit (x64).
  • Windows Server 2008 R2 Service Pack 1 – 64-bit (x64).

Please ensure all the latest Microsoft service packs and updates are installed.

On 14 January 2020, Microsoft will end all support for Windows 7 operating system, including security updates. However we strongly recommend that you upgrade to windows 10 before this date.
As an alternative to upgrading your operating system you can simply move your sage Software onto a computer that already has a newer Operating System on it.
RAM (memory) 2 gigabytes (GB).
Free disk space 2GB after installation. You also need additional space for data files.
Network speed 1Gbps (100 Mbps minimum).
Backup media USB memory stick.
Microsoft .NET Framework 4.6.2.

Other requirements
  • Internet Explorer v11 or higher.
  • An Internet connection.
  • Latest version of Adobe Reader, or an equivalent PDF reader.
  • Screen resolution between 1024 x 768 and 1920 x 1080 – this applies to 4k and hi-res monitors.
  • Antivirus software should be configured to exclude Sage files from its scanning routines.
  • Administrator Account

 

Office integration

Some features of your Sage payroll software interact with and require an installation of Microsoft Office.

These features include:

  • Emailing payslips and reports.
  • Exporting reports to Microsoft Excel.

Sage Payroll isn’t compatible with 64-bit editions of Microsoft Office.

 

Office versions that are compatible
  • Microsoft Office 365 (32-bit desktop edition).
  • Microsoft Office 2016 (32-bit desktop edition).
  • Microsoft Office 2013 (32-bit desktop edition).
  • Microsoft Office 2010 (32-bit desktop edition).
  • Microsoft Office 2007.
  • Microsoft Office 2003.

Microsoft Office 2003, 2007 and 2010 are no longer supported by Microsoft, therefore we’re limited in the support we can offer. We can help with basic steps, however if these don’t work, you should upgrade your software to a more recent version.

 

Supported types of installation

You can run Sage Payroll as a standalone type install or server/client arrangement.

The following network configurations are not supported:

  • Peer to peer network.
  • Citrix client-server network.
  • Wide area network (WAN).
  • Virtual-Machine platforms or configuration (VM-ware).

 

Check the operating system
  1. Press the Windows key + R.
  2. Type winver then click OK.

This opens the About Windows window which displays the operating system details.

 

 

 

If you’re using an Apple Mac computer, you can see the Apple symbol at the top right-hand corner of the screen. Sage Micropay isn’t currently tested on this type of operating system.

 

On 14 January 2020, Microsoft will end all support for Windows 7 operating system, including security updates. However we strongly recommend that you upgrade to windows 10 before this date.
As an alternative to upgrading your operating system you can simply move your sage Software onto a computer that already has a newer Operating System on it.

 

Check Microsoft .Net Framework
  1. Press the Windows key + R.
  2. Type appwiz.cpl then click OK.A list of installed programs appears.
  3. Scroll down and check if the entries for Microsoft .NET Framework 4.6.2 are listed.
  4. If Microsoft .NET Framework 4.6.2 is installed, you don’t need to take any further action. If it’s not installed, you must download and install it from the Microsoft website.

 

Check other computer specifications

Operating system, processor speed and RAM

  1. Press the Windows key + R .
  2. Type msinfo32 then click OK.

 

 

Check other computer specifications

Operating system, processor speed and RAM

  1. Press the Windows key + R .
  2. Type msinfo32 then click OK.

 

 

If the memory appears in KB (Kilobytes), to calculate the equivalent in MB (Megabytes) you can divide the figure by 1024. Alternatively, use the following values as a guide:

  • 1 GB = 1024 MB = 1,048,576 KB
  • 512MB = 524,288 KB
  • 256MB = 262,144 KB
  • 128MB = 131,072 KB
  • 64MB = 65,536 KB
  • 32MB = 32,768 KB
  • 16MB = 16,384 KB
Free disk space
    1. Press the Windows key + E.
    2. Depending on your version of Windows, complete one of the following options:
Windows 10 Click This PC, then right-click C: and left-click Properties.
Windows 8 Click Computer, then right-click C: and left-click Properties.
Windows 7 or below Right-click C:, then left-click Properties.

 

 

Internet Explorer version
  1. Open Internet Explorer.
  2. On the menu bar, click Help then click About Internet Explorer.

If the Help menu doesn’t appear, press the Alt key on your keyboard.

 

 

Display settings
  1. From your Windows desktop, click Start.
  2. Depending on your version of Windows, complete one of the following options:
Windows 10 and 8 Settings > System > Display > Advanced display settings > Resolution.
Windows 7 or below Control Panel > Appearance and Personalization > Display > Adjust screen resolution.

 

 

 

Tax Code Changer

Written by Pimbrook Support on .

Tax Code Changer

 

1. Backup up Data

2. Restore Locally

3. Print tax code details

4. Prepare mapping Structure to Sage Default Tax Codes – See Sage KBA 33290

 

What the outcome to be:

Pimbrook current Codes Sage Codes
T2 T3
T3 T2
T12 T13
T13 T28

 

How to change them:

Pimbrook Codes Sage Codes
T13 T28
T12 T13
T2 T40
T3 T2
T40 T3

 

Please ensure you change codes in the correct sequence.

example

5. Run Adept Tool

  • Browse to the correct Data Path
  • Enter in the Manager name and password
  • Select All Transactions
  • Tick the Update Box
  • Enter in the current tax code
  • Enter in want you want the new tax code to be
  • Run

Repeat this for every tax code you want to change

 

6. Log into sage – Reindex and compress the data

7. Check the tax codes

 

8. Change tax code in Configuration to match the correct tax codes you have changed

See Sage KBA 33290

9. Backup data and send back to the customer

 

 

Sage Micropay CSO setup

Written by samantha on .

Sage Micropay CSO setup

 

If the Central Statistic Office (CSO) has selected your company for participation in their survey and you haven’t yet setup CSO reporting in Micropay, this document
will explain how to set this up.  Once you have completed the setup you can generate the following CSO survey reports.

  • Earnings, hours and employee cost survey (NHECS)
    This report monitors change in labour costs in Ireland and across the EU and must cover all payrolls belonging  to the same tax registration and is
    submitted quarterly to the CSO
  • National employment survey (NES)
    The (NES) reports on statistical employment information from business that have more than three employees.  This report  must cover all payrolls
    belonging to the current company and be submitted annually to the CSO at the end of the calendar year.

There are 3 steps to setting up CSO reporting in Sage Micropay,  Activate the CSO reporting feature,  Set up your payments for CSO reporting and Setup you
employees for CSO reporting.

 

Step 1 – How to activate the CSO feature in Sage Micropay

  • On the top menu bar click on Company/Payroll and select on ‘Company Details’.
  • On the ‘Company Details’ screen click on the tab ‘CSO’
  • On the ‘CSO’ tab enter in your company’s central business register (CBR) number into the ‘CSO CBR Number’ box and click ‘OK’. (If you are unsure of this
    number please contact the Central Statistic Office)

This process must be completed on each of your payrolls in order to activate the CSO feature.

 

Step 2 – How to setup your payments for CSO reporting

Once you have activated the CSO feature in Step 1 you are  now ready to start configuring your Payments for CSO reporting.  You don’t need to
specify CSO settings for the following payment types:  Redundancy, illness benefit,  Benefit in Kind (BIK), maternity benefit and paternity benefit.

  1. On the menu bar, click Company/Payroll then click Payments.  This will list all the payments entered in Sage Micropay
  2. Select a payment that’s subject to CSO reporting and click ‘Edit’.
  3. Under ‘CSO Statistical Reporting, complete the following information:
    EHECS Type                  Choose the relevant CSO type for this payment.  If you are unsure please contact the Central Statistic Office for assistance
    Hours Multiplier           Enter the CSO hours multiplier value.  This helps to ensure that the hours you record in the EHECS report is accurate
    NES Type                       Select the NES type for the payment if applicable.
  4. Click ‘Save’ to save your changes.
  5. Repeat steps 2 to 4 for all relevant payments then click ‘Close’.
  6. Repeat all the above steps in each of your payrolls.

 

Step 3 – How to setup your employees for CSO reporting

Once you have added the CSO details to your payments you will now need to add the CSO categories to each of your employees on your payrolls, to do this:

  1. Open your employees record by clicking on the ‘Edit Employee’ icon on your process map or by clicking on ‘Processing’ on the top menu bar
    and select ‘Edit Employee’.
  2. Select the employee that you wish to add the CSO details to and click on the ‘CSO’ tab.
  3. If your employee needs to be excluded from the CSO report, tick the ‘Exclude Employee from CSO Reports’ box and then click ‘Save’.
  4. To include this employee in the CSO report, complete the following information:
    *  Occupation Status
    *  Type of Employment Contract
    *  CSO Occupation Category
    *  Hours per Working Day
    *  Contracted Hours
  5. Click ‘Save’ to save your changes.
  6.  Repeat steps 2 to 5 for all employees on your payroll.
  7. Repeat the steps above for all your payrolls.

 

Please note, if you are setting up the CSO feature mid year, you must delete all entries on the CSO History table and then repopulate it.  This is because
the CSO History was populated before you made any amendments to the CSO details.  Once  you click on the button ‘Fil in Blank History’ Sage
Micropay will re populate the CSO history table with the new information that you have entered against the employee.

How to Delete the Existing CSO history

In the Employee Details on the CSO tab click onto the CSO entry line and press F5 on your keyboard to delete each of the lines.

Once you have cleared out the old CSO History click on the ‘Fill Blank History’, Sage Micropay will repopulate the CSO history with your amended
details.

 

Click ‘Save’ to save your changes.

 

(SD)

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