A new online payments service from PCSE launched on 1 June 2021. The online system allows practices and GP’s working in general practice to access a range of services to help manage payments and pensions administration.
Practices are able to grant their accountant access to the system and allocate specific roles to their accountant which will enable them to access various areas of the online platform.
Perhaps the most important role to be granted is GPP Accountant as this will allow accountants to process Type 1 and Type 2 pension certificates.
Where a Type 2 GP works at a practice who has granted the accountant access, their records can be viewed. If the Type 2 GP does not work at a practice that you act for, no access can be granted at practice level.
At present, for Type 2 pension certificates, PCSE guidance is that the certificate can be completed by downloading the relevant form from NHS pensions and submitted via the “Contact Us” page on the PCSE website rather than using PCSE online.
The role of GPP – Practice Estimates and Salary change will allow accountants to access and amend the estimate of pensionable profits form. Be aware that the estimated pensionable income can be changed on an individual basis by either the practice or the GP and this information will feed through to the estimates form.
When practices allocate roles to their accountant, or there are any changes such as practice statements being uploaded (if the role of GPP – Statements has been allocated) or revised estimates forms submitted, an e-mail will be sent to the e-mail address registered to your PCSE online account. Therefore be prepared for a large volume of e-mails to arrive. Not all of the e-mails will identify which practice the change relates to.
PCSE have a number of PowerPoint user guides for accountants which can be found on the PCSE website.
While the online system should provide more transparency with regards to the processing of pension certificates and estimates, there is no doubt that the workload for accountants will increase.
Perhaps inevitably, there have been issues with GP statements and payments to practices. In some instances, the wrong amounts have been paid to practices, and for others, the statement figures have not added up correctly. Hopefully these issues will be resolved soon.
While on the ICAEW webinar, PCSE were very confident that the online system would cope with the large volume of certificates that are submitted in February. While we all hope that this is the case, experience tells us that this may not be so.
As ever, in the world of dealing with GP practices, nothing stands still, but that is one of the reasons why I love what I do.
*The views expressed are the author’s and not ICAEW’s.