Jackie Cahill (Tipperary, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

283. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the circumstances that have resulted in substitute teachers paying emergency tax since before Christmas 2018; the measures he has taken to resolve the issue; when it will be resolved; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7024/19]

Joe McHugh (Donegal, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The Revenue Commissioners introduced real time PAYE (PAYE modernisation) which went live on the 1^stJanuary 2019. This was the biggest change to the PAYE system since the 1960s.

From 1 January 2019 employers are required to report their employees’ pay and statutory deductions to Revenue for each payroll issue.

The salary issue relates to the taxation of the substitute staff who were paid in the first payroll of 2019 and in the case of post primary substitute teachers in the second payroll.

In these payrolls, in which the new system was applied for the first time the payroll files that transferred to Revenue inadvertently included an end date for substitute staff. This informed Revenue that these staff would not be paid under this employer number in the future.

This notification caused Revenue to immediately reduce the tax credits and cut off points to zero for this cohort of staff which meant that when they were next paid, there were no tax credits available to be applied to the salary.

This has meant that some substitute staff paid on the payrolls of the 3^rd, 10^thand 17^thJanuary and who have continued to be employed since have been assigned week 1 / cumulative zero credits or emergency tax.

The payroll software has been amended to prevent an end date transferring to Revenue for future payments which means substitute staff paid on payrolls after the 17^thJanuary do not have problems with tax credits.

However this software amendment did not correct the issues that arose for the staff who were paid already.

My Department is working closely with Revenue to implement a solution to this problem. A solution is currently being implemented in consultation with Revenue.

Some adjustments will be processed for the post primary payroll issue of the 14^thFebruary and further adjustments will be processed for the next pay issue of the 28^thFebruary.

This solution will be applied to the primary and non teaching staff payrolls of the 21st February and primary substitute teachers and substitute non teaching staff paid on that date should have the correct tax deducted.

There are staff paid on the payroll who are assigned zero credits apart from those impacted by the end date issue. For example in cases where a substitute staff member is retired and in receipt of pension their credits may be assigned to the pension payment and zero credits assigned to the substitute employment. In addition teachers are placed on emergency basis where their tax position has not been finalised with Revenue. Some substitute staff may have other employments and their credits may be assigned to that employment.