The 2026/27 UK Payroll Calendar: What Employers Need to Know

Running payroll accurately depends on more than getting the sums right. It depends on timing. Every tax year brings a fixed set of dates that determine when Pay As You Earn (PAYE) and National Insurance (NI) must reach HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC), when submissions are due, and when statutory forms must be issued to employees.

For organisations managing payroll in-house or overseeing an outsourced service, the 2026/27 payroll calendar sets the framework for the entire tax year. This guide sets out how the calendar works, the full schedule of dates for 2026/27, and how organisations can build these deadlines into everyday processes without last-minute scrambling.

 

Why the payroll calendar matters

Payroll does not run on the same calendar as the rest of the business. While most financial reporting follows the standard calendar month, PAYE and NI are calculated using tax months and tax weeks, which follow their own start and end points.

This distinction matters because a payroll date that looks correct against a calendar month can be several days out against the tax month. Get it wrong and the consequences are not hypothetical: HMRC applies penalties for late filing and late payment, even where the underlying payroll figures are entirely accurate.

A lot of organisations do not realise this until a deadline is missed. Building the payroll calendar into planning from the start of the tax year removes that risk.

 

Understanding tax months and tax weeks

How a UK tax month is defined

A UK tax month always runs from the 6th of one calendar month to the 5th of the next. This structure does not shift for weekends, bank holidays, or leap years, and it applies uniformly across every payroll in the country.

While the tax month itself never moves, the payment deadline can. Electronic payments to HMRC must clear by the 22nd of the month following the end of the tax month. If the 22nd falls on a weekend or bank holiday, payment must clear on the last working day before it.

How tax weeks work

Tax weeks follow the same underlying logic. The 2026/27 tax year begins on Monday 6 April 2026, and from that point the year is divided into 52 consecutive seven-day blocks. This structure supports organisations running weekly or fortnightly payrolls, where fortnightly runs simply combine two consecutive tax weeks (for example, Weeks 1 and 2 processed together).

A practical way to picture this: an organisation paying staff every second Friday does not need to recalculate tax allowances from scratch each cycle. It applies the combined allowance for the two tax weeks the pay period covers.

 

Key 2026/27 payroll dates and deadlines

The table below sets out the full schedule of tax months for 2026/27, along with the electronic payment deadline for each and a note wherever that deadline has shifted from the 22nd.

Two things are worth noting from this schedule:

• Only two deadlines move in 2026/27: Months 4 and 7, where the 22nd lands on a weekend. Every other month follows the standard date.
• Paper payments follow a different rule. Where HMRC is paid by cheque rather than electronically, the deadline is the 19th, not the 22nd, of the following month.

What happens if a deadline is slips

Missing a payroll deadline is rarely the result of a payroll error. More often, it is a scheduling oversight—a submission logged too close to the cut-off, or a payment initiated a day later than it needed to be.

HMRC does not distinguish between the two. A late Full Payment Submission (FPS), a late Employer Payment Summary (EPS), or a late payment can each trigger a penalty, regardless of whether the figures reported were correct.

The risk is not limited to the monthly cycle. At the end of the tax year, organisations also need to track:

• The deadline for the final FPS of the tax year
• The P60 issue date for all employees still on the payroll at 5 April
• The P11D filing window, where benefits in kind apply

Missing any of these carries the same financial and reputational consequences as a routine monthly submission running late.

 

How organisations can prepare for the year ahead

Building the payroll calendar into day-to-day operations does not require a complex system. In practice, most organisations that stay ahead of HMRC deadlines rely on a small number of consistent habits.

A practical checklist for the 2026/27 tax year:

1. Load all twelve monthly deadlines into the payroll calendar at the start of the tax year, not month by month.
2. Set internal reminders several working days before the 19th (paper) and 22nd (electronic) deadlines, rather than on the day itself.
3. Confirm which deadlines fall on a weekend or bank holiday, and adjust internal target dates accordingly.
4. Configure payroll software to automate Real Time Information (RTI) submissions alongside BACS payment runs, so the two remain aligned.
5. Diarise year-end tasks separately: final FPS, P60 issue date, and P11D filing window.
6. Review the schedule again at the mid-point of the tax year to confirm nothing has changed and that internal processes remain on track.

Example scenario: A 200-employee organisation running a monthly payroll sets calendar reminders five working days ahead of each electronic payment deadline, rather than on the 22nd itself. When Month 4’s deadline shifts to Friday 21 August because the 22nd falls on a Saturday, the reminder already accounts for it, so the payment clears on time without a last-minute check.

 

Best practice for staying compliant throughout the year

A well-run payroll calendar is not just a compliance exercise. It reduces pressure on payroll teams and reduces the risk of errors caused by rushed submissions.

A few points worth bearing in mind:

• Automation reduces risk but does not remove the need for oversight. Automated RTI and BACS integration works well for routine monthly cycles, but organisations should still review outputs before submission, particularly around irregular pay events such as bonuses or leavers.
• Weekly and fortnightly payrolls need closer attention to tax week boundaries, since these cycles are more exposed to timing errors than monthly runs.
• Year-end deadlines deserve their own checklist, separate from the monthly cycle, given the number of forms involved and the shorter lead time organisations typically leave for them.
• Organisations that outsource payroll should confirm, in writing, who is responsible for monitoring each deadline—the provider, an internal team member, or both—to avoid gaps in accountability.

For the full set of figures behind the 2026/27 tax year, including thresholds and statutory rates, Cintra’s 2026/27 payroll legislation guide sets out the detail in one place. HMRC’s own guidance on PAYE and payroll for employers and reporting and paying HMRC is also worth bookmarking as a primary reference.

 

Plan ahead for a smoother 2026/27 payroll year

The 2026/27 payroll calendar follows a predictable structure, but predictability only helps if it is built into everyday processes. Organisations that map out tax months, payment deadlines, and year-end dates at the start of the year (rather than reacting to each one as it approaches), consistently report fewer errors, fewer penalties, and less pressure on payroll teams during peak periods.

Whether payroll is managed in-house or through a provider, the same principle applies: the calendar rewards preparation. For organisations reviewing how their current payroll software or outsourced payroll service handles these deadlines, this is a good point in the year to check.

If your organisation would like support keeping submissions and payments on schedule throughout 2026/27, get in touch with our team to find out how our fully managed payroll services can help. You may also find our related guide on FPS and EPS submissions useful for understanding how RTI reporting fits into this calendar, alongside our overview of Statutory Sick Pay rates for 2026/27, which shares several of the same deadline dependencies.