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Releases - 25.10

These release notes provide information on new features, enhancements and fixes developed since the last release, listed by change reason:

  • Product enhancements

  • Legislative updates

Product Enhancements

Statutory Neonatal Care Pay (SNCP)

From 2025/2026 tax year onwards, employees with a parental or other personal relationship with a baby who is receiving neonatal care can take up to 12 weeks of paid leave.

  • Employees are entitled to a minimum of one week, in addition to other leave entitlements such as maternity, paternity, and shared parental leave.

  • SNCP applies in England, Scotland, and Wales, but not currently in Northern Ireland.

Key Factors of SNCP:

  • Leave must be taken within the first 68 weeks of the baby’s birth.

  • SNCP can be taken in two tiers:

Tier One

  • Applies when leave is taken while the child is in neonatal care or within one week after discharge.

  • Can be taken flexibly in non-consecutive weekly periods.

Tier Two

  • Applies after the Tier One period ends and until the end of the 68-week period.

  • Must be taken in a single continuous block.

Software adjustments for SNCP:

  • In Employee | Statutory Payments | SNCP Calculation, we have added a Statutory Neonatal Care Pay menu item.

    The Statutory Neonatal Care Pay menu item only displays if on the Group Set-up Users screen, Statutory Payments option is active.

  • In the Group Set-up - Users screen, To Date section we have added an SNCP option.

  • Added an SNCP Details screen, allowing you to complete the fields for an employee who qualifies for SNCP.

  • In Employee Details | To-date tab, we have added a SNCP field. Selecting History on the To-date tab displays a SNCP option.

  • In Qualifying and Pensionable Earnings, we have added a Statutory Neonatal Care Pay option.

  • The Statutory Payments screen now includes a Statutory Neonatal Care Pay option.

  • Updated all relevant reports and payslips to cater for SNCP.

  • The Diary Entry now includes a new category for Neonatal Care Leave.

  • In Company Options, we have renamed Contra of SSP – SMP/SAP/SPP/ShPP/SPBP to Contra of SSP – SMP/SAP/SPP/ShPP/SPBP/SNCP.

  • The Company | Holiday Set-Up screen now includes a SNCP checkbox in the Accrual Rate section.

  • In Company | Holiday Set-up | Holiday Calculation | Configure Earnings, we have added a Statutory Neonatal Care Pay option.

  • The Import Data screen now includes a SNCP To-date option.

  • The Export Data screen now includes a SNCP This Period and SNCP To-date options.

  • The HMRC Monthly Details screen now has a SNCP tab.

Employee Workplace Postcode

From April 2025, HMRC intends to reject an FPS if a Freeport or Investment Zone NIC category letter is reported for an employment but does not contain the workplace postcode for any qualifying employee.

In Employee Details | Tax/NI tab, we have added an Employee Workplace Postcode field, which is active if the employee has either Working in a Freeport or Working in an Investment Zone selected.

Employment Allowance

  • The Employment Allowance rate has increased from £5,000 to £10,500.

    The restriction preventing employers with a secondary Class 1 NIC liability of more than £100,000 in the previous tax year from claiming it has been removed.

  • We have updated the wording on all Employment Allowance screens to reflect the rate changes.

  • We have also removed the de minimis state aid wording from Employment Allowance and reworded it to State aid rules do not apply.

National Insurance

On 30th October 2024, the Government announced changes affecting National Insurance contributions Secondary Threshold and Secondary Class 1 rate. From 6th April 2025, the NICs Secondary Threshold decreases from £9,100 to £5,000, and the main rate of Secondary (Employers) Class 1 NICs increases from 13.8% to 15%. We have updated the system with the new threshold and rate.

Female Employee - NI Letter

When updating a female employee's record and selecting NI letters B, E, or I, their date of birth has to be on or before the 5th April 1961.

This change follows a new rule introduced by HMRC where the FPS will be rejected when a reduced rate NICs category letter (B, E or I) is supplied but does not qualify based on the date of birth.

NICs compensation rate on Statutory Payments

Employers can currently reclaim 92% of employees’ Statutory Maternity, Paternity, Adoption, Parental Bereavement and Shared Parental Pay, or if a business has paid £45,000 or less in Class 1 National Insurance (ignoring any reductions like Employment Allowance) in the last complete tax year they can qualify for Small Employers Relief, and reclaim 100% of the Statutory Payment, plus an additional 3% compensation.

From 6th April 2025, the rate or compensation increases from 3% to 8.5%. We have updated the system with the new rate.

Legislation

Car and Fuel Benefit

Car and fuel benefit thresholds for the 2025/2026 tax year (opens in a new tab).

Tax Codes

Personal allowance tax code rates for the 2025/2026 tax year (opens in a new tab).

National Minimum Wage / National Living Wage

National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage rates for the 2025/2026 tax year (opens in a new tab).

NI Thresholds have changed:

  • ST is now below the LEL

  • Employers now pay 15% NI instead of 13.8%.

Scottish Arrestment of Earnings

Tax, NI and Statutory Payment Rates

Tax, NI, and statutory payment rates for the 2025/2026 tax year. We have modified the system with these rates (opens in a new tab).

Student/Postgraduate Loan

Updated student and postgraduate loan thresholds for the 2025/2026 tax year (opens in a new tab).

Scottish Arrestment of Earnings

  • The thresholds have been updated for the 2025/2026 tax year in line with the latest regulations.

RTI

FPS - 2025/2026

In line with government legislation, we have updated the FPS schema for the 2024/2025 tax year.

EPS - 2025/2026

We have amended the EPS schema for submissions relating to the 2025/2026 tax year.

EYFPS - 2024/2025

We have amended the EYFPS schema for submissions relating to the 2024/2025 tax year.

Other improvements

P60s

A new P60 layout for year-end 2024/2025 is now available.

Previous releases