Hospitality payroll
Hospitality Payroll Services for Pubs, Restaurants, Hotels and Cafes
Weekly or monthly payroll for pubs, restaurants, hotels and cafes, from £2.50 + VAT per payslip.
Cardiff-based payroll bureau. Serving employers across the UK.
- Since 2011
- 500+ clients
- 5.0 on Google (16 reviews)
- ICO registered
- Hiscox insured
Hospitality payroll changes every week. Hours vary, staff come and go with the seasons, and tips and service charges bring their own tax rules. Payroll Service (UK) Ltd is a Cardiff payroll bureau that has run payroll for UK employers since 2011. You send us the hours and tips, we handle the calculations, HMRC, payslips and pensions, and you get back to running service.
Why hospitality payroll is different
Restaurant payroll, pub payroll and hotel payroll all share the same pressure points: variable hours, a young and changing workforce, and tips.
Tips, tronc and service charge
Since 1 October 2024, the Employment (Allocation of Tips) Act 2023 requires all tips to be passed on to workers without deductions, with a statutory code of practice on fair and transparent allocation. Tax depends on who decides the split: if the employer does, PAYE and National Insurance apply; where an independent troncmaster decides and the employer is not involved, PAYE applies but no National Insurance is due.
Variable hours and weekly pay
Most front-of-house and kitchen staff work different hours every week, and many expect to be paid weekly. Payroll has to be quick, accurate and on time, every week.
Seasonal staff and turnover
Summer and Christmas peaks, students and returning staff mean a steady flow of starters and leavers. Each needs the right tax code, a P45 when they leave and a pension assessment while they work.
Holiday pay for irregular hours
For irregular-hours workers, holiday can be calculated at 12.07% of hours worked for leave years starting on or after 1 April 2024, and rolled-up holiday pay is permitted for them.
Minimum wage risks
From 1 April 2026 the rates are £12.71 an hour for 21 and over, £10.85 for 18 to 20 and £8.00 for under 18s. Tips and service charges do not count towards minimum wage pay, and deductions or payments for a required uniform reduce it.
Several sites, one payroll
Groups with more than one pub, restaurant or hotel often want staff costs split by site while keeping one PAYE scheme. Payroll journals and reports for your bookkeeping help keep that clear.
What we handle for you
Everything a hospitality business needs from a payroll bureau, run by a named team in Cardiff.
- Weekly, fortnightly, four-weekly and monthly pay runs
- Tips and service charges paid through payroll as a separate pay element
- Holiday pay calculations, including for irregular-hours and seasonal staff
- PAYE, National Insurance and student loan deductions
- RTI submissions to HMRC (FPS and EPS) every pay run
- Secure online payslips for every employee
- Starters, leavers and P45s, at no extra charge
- Pension auto-enrolment: assessment, enrolment, re-enrolment and contribution files for NEST, Smart Pension, People’s Pension and others
- Statutory pay: SSP, SMP, SPP and ShPP
- Attachment of earnings orders
- P60s and year end
- Payroll journals and reports for your bookkeeping
- A payment report so you stay in control of paying staff
How it works
Four steps, then the same simple routine every pay run.
Send us your details
Your employees, pay rates and pay frequencies, PAYE reference and pension scheme. Switching mid-year? We bring your year-to-date figures across.
Set up within 24 hours
Your payroll is set up within 24 hours of us receiving the information. We take over from any payroll software or provider.
Send hours each pay run
Send us hours from your rota or EPOS system, plus tips or service charge allocations and any starters or leavers.
We process and report
We calculate pay, submit RTI to HMRC, deliver payslips and send you the payment report. You pay your staff; we handle the pension submission.
Simple per-payslip pricing
One price per payslip, so a large weekly team stays affordable.
- No setup fee and no contracts
- No extra charges for starters, leavers, P45s, P60s or year end
- Pension auto-enrolment included in the per-payslip price
★★★★★
“Rhys and the team provide an absolutely exceptional service…”
We run payroll for employers in every sector. Pubs, restaurants, hotels and cafes are among the businesses that benefit most from a specialist, because of weekly pay, seasonal staff and tips. See all our payroll services or read how we work as a UK payroll bureau.
Hospitality payroll questions
Do you work with tronc schemes?
Yes. Where a troncmaster runs a separate tronc PAYE scheme, we can process that payroll alongside your main one using the troncmaster’s allocations. Tell us how your scheme is set up when you ask for a quote. We do not act as troncmaster or decide how tips are shared.
Can you process tips and service charges through our payroll?
Yes. Where tips or service charges are distributed through your own payroll, we include them as a separate pay element with the correct tax and National Insurance treatment. How tips are allocated is your decision, made under the statutory code of practice.
Our staff hours change every week. Is that a problem?
No. Send us the hours each pay run and we calculate pay, holiday pay and pension assessment. Weekly payroll is from £2.50 + VAT per payslip.
How do you work out holiday pay for casual staff?
We apply the method you use. For irregular-hours workers in leave years starting on or after 1 April 2024, that can be accrual at 12.07% of hours worked or rolled-up holiday pay paid with each payslip.
Do you charge for seasonal starters and leavers?
No. Starters, leavers and P45s are included, so a busy summer or Christmas season does not add extra charges.
Do you pay our staff?
You stay in control of payments. We give you the payment report for each pay run and you pay staff from your own bank account.
Payroll that keeps up with your business
Tell us how many staff you pay and how often, and we will send you a clear per-payslip quote.