Payroll for small employers in Woking and Surrey
Taking somebody on brings four obligations at once — registering as an employer, reporting every payday to HMRC, meeting minimum wage law, and assessing that person for a workplace pension.
Miss the pension one and the fine arrives before you have realised it applied to you.
The 2026/27 numbers
Rates changed in April. Two of the figures below are commonly quoted wrongly on accountancy websites — see underneath.
| Item | 2026/27 | Was |
|---|---|---|
| National Living Wage, 21 and over | £12.71 | £12.21 |
| 18 to 20 | £10.85 | £10.00 |
| Under 18 and apprentice | £8.00 | £7.55 |
| Employer National Insurance | 15% above £5,000 a year | — |
| Employment Allowance | £10,500 | — |
| Pension minimum contribution | 8% total, at least 3% from you | — |
| Business mileage, first 10,000 | 55p | 45p |
Two things widely quoted wrongly
The Employment Allowance cap has gone
You used to be barred from claiming if your employer National Insurance bill exceeded £100,000 the previous year. That restriction was removed in April 2025 — so employers who ruled themselves out may now qualify for £10,500 off the bill. A great many websites still state the old rule.
The mileage rate moved
45p had been unchanged for so long that almost everyone assumes it still applies. For 2026/27 it is 55p for the first 10,000 business miles, then 25p.
What we do
Payroll run
Monthly or weekly, with the RTI submission filed on or before payday, every time.
Payslips and forms
Payslips, P60s, P45s and starter checklists, issued without you chasing.
Auto-enrolment
Every employee assessed, the pension scheme handled, and the declaration of compliance filed.
Statutory pay
Sick, maternity, paternity and adoption pay calculated correctly when they come up.
What to pay HMRC
The figure and the date — the 22nd of the month if you pay electronically, the 19th by post.
Directors' payroll
The salary level that works alongside your dividends, reviewed each April rather than left on last year's number.
One director, no other staff? There is a specific trap. A company where the sole director is the only person earning above the secondary threshold cannot claim the Employment Allowance. Worth checking before you assume it applies.
Schedule a 20 min Free Review with me.
I offer a review, not a sales call — which may or may not lead anywhere. Most people come away with two or three things worth far more than twenty minutes.
What we cover
- 01Whether you can claim the £10,500 Employment Allowance
- 02Your auto-enrolment duties and when they start
- 03The salary level that works with your dividends