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Overpayment Maternity

  • 07-04-2016 10:04am
    #1
    sareer
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 168 ✭✭


    I have been on maternity leave since Sep 2015 and our HR told me I will be paid for three months and then unpaid until I rejoin. So far so good.

    I noticed in Feb and now again in March that I am still receiving salary payments from my company. As our HR person (there is only one for all of our EU offices) is inexperienced and had made some mistakes even when we discussed maternity legalities etc, I emailed her to check if this is how it's supposed to be as I had understood I would have be unpaid by now and shouldn't have received these additional payments. She replied she is in touch with payroll and will get back to me. That was on Monday and I haven't heard back. I am waiting and don't intend to push here. I have no intention to keep money that's not mine.

    I read online that the company is not allowed to adjust my future salary when I rejoin to make up if they overpaid during maternity leave. Is there anything else I should be aware of? Would they need to give me some tax papers so I don't run into issues later on, for example? I am just conscious that she is very inexperienced and I might end up in trouble due to that.


Comments

  • #2
    seamus
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 68,317 ✭✭✭✭seamus


    sareer wrote: »
    I read online that the company is not allowed to adjust my future salary when I rejoin to make up if they overpaid during maternity leave.

    I'm not sure where you read that. If an employer has overpaid you, they can make deductions from your pay in order to recoup those overpayments. However any deductions must have due regard to your circumstances - i.e. they can't just not pay you for a month if you can't afford to go without pay for a month. In that case they have to spread the deduction over several months.

    From the point of view of the taxman, you've been in continuous employment with your employer so whatever payroll system they're using should automatically calculate the correct level of tax regardless of how much you've received.


  • #3
    sareer
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 168 ✭✭sareer


    I have a follow-up query. They got back to me and turns out I owe them for Nov until March as they overpaid more months than I had (mis)calculated. What about my tax/tax credits last year? Would that not have had any impact? What should I do? I have already done a P21 request and all - is this an issue now?


    They indeed suggested paying back to company in full or through salary over the next months once back on payroll.


  • #4
    davo10
    Closed Accounts Posts: 6,926 ✭✭✭davo10


    sareer wrote: »
    I have a follow-up query. They got back to me and turns out I owe them for Nov until March as they overpaid more months than I had (mis)calculated. What about my tax/tax credits last year? Would that not have had any impact? What should I do? I have already done a P21 request and all - is this an issue now?


    They indeed suggested paying back to company in full or through salary over the next months once back on payroll.

    Payroll automatically resets revenue deductions when you pay back overpayments. You get back the tax credits and they are reapplied going forward. This is always a worry for employees paying back wages they should not have received but it is easily rectified by payroll software.


  • #5
    the_syco
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 37,316 ✭✭✭✭the_syco


    Check if the sum that they say you owe includes tax that you have paid, or not.

    Simple example; get paid €100, pay €20 tax. Are they looking for the full €100 back, or the amount that you got into your account, after tax was deducted?


  • #6
    nikkibikki
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,226 ✭✭✭nikkibikki


    davo10 wrote: »
    Payroll automatically resets revenue deductions when you pay back overpayments. You get back the tax credits and they are reapplied going forward. This is always a worry for employees paying back wages they should not have received but it is easily rectified by payroll software.

    Does this apply also when an overpayment has happened in the previous tax year with a P60 already issued?


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  • #7
    sareer
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 168 ✭✭sareer


    nikkibikki wrote: »
    Does this apply also when an overpayment has happened in the previous tax year with a P60 already issued?

    I spoke to Revenue today and they said as some of the overpayment took place last year they want to me to get a document from my company. They want to see how my company handled taxing my maternity benefit (apparently I also got too low of a salary during the months that I was supposed to be paid while off) and a summary of the overpayment as both were seemingly inaccurately handled (said the officer taking a brief glance at it while on the phone with me). As one month of overpayment was last year this could mean I will get a new P21 and potentially adjusted tax for last year.

    If this happened to anyone, I would recommend calling the Revenue hotline to chat. I have found my company to be very unhelpful and Revenue seem able to take care of this finally.


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