Payroll software aims to make life a little easier

The Government's proposed payroll subsidy for small businesses looks set to make life easier for owners and big money for intermediaries.

Announced by Finance Minister Michael Cullen in the Budget and due to come into effect in March, the subsidy is expected to cost taxpayers about $50 million a year.

For software entrepreneur Peter Wijeyeratne, managing director of Wellington firm SmartPayroll, the Government's bankrolling of payroll services for employers with five or fewer staff and an annual PAYE bill of under $100,000 is shaping up like big business.

Wijeyeratne said the service removed the complexity of fulfilling income tax and payroll obligations and apart from a set-up fee of $250 was provided free for up to five employees.

SmartPayroll is matching the Government's payroll subsidy for larger employers by providing the service free for the first five employees and charging $6 an employee a month for additional employees.

Wijeyeratne said SmartPayroll was "exactly" the kind of solution Cullen envisaged.

"Employers can now pass their payroll worries over to SmartPayroll and get on with their core business. This gives employers peace of mind as getting tax obligations wrong can result in severe penalties imposed by IRD."

It was a "one-stop shop" for IRD-related compliance.

- NZPA