PAYE54001 - Employer returns: regulation 80 determinations: introduction

Determinations made under Regulation 80 of the Income Tax (Pay As You Earn) Regulations 2003 (SI2003/2682) are used to collect unpaid PAYE tax that is due from an employer. They are often used to collect tax due on director’s pay but they can be used for all employees where the employer has failed to operate PAYE correctly.

Regulation 80 gives HMRC the power to determine tax which is due from an employer but remains unpaid and so is a means of enforcing payment of PAYE.

Always refer to the determination as a determination, not as an assessment. A determination is made in a figure of tax, unlike an assessment which is on a figure of income, profit or gain.

In this guidance, the term employee(s) will be used to cover both directors and employees. The term ‘director’ will be used where guidance relates solely to that office holder.