How to Offer Payroll to Clients Without Doing It Yourself (For Accountants)
- Damian Allen
- Oct 14
- 2 min read
If you’re an accountant, clients expect payroll help. But running it in-house is time-consuming, risky, and not always profitable.
The solution? Offer payroll as a service—without doing it yourself.
Here’s how to do it right.
Why Accountants Avoid In-House Payroll
Payroll is:
Deadline-driven
High-risk for penalties
Frequently changing (HMRC updates, pension rules, etc.)
Not scalable without a dedicated team
Most small firms don’t have time to manage:
Weekly pay runs
HMRC filings
Auto-enrolment admin
Starter/leaver tracking
Staff queries about tax codes or payslips
What Clients Expect From You
Your clients don’t know where your service ends and payroll begins. They expect:
Advice on setting up PAYE
Help onboarding new employees
RTI compliance
Pension enrolment support
Payroll reports that sync with bookkeeping
If you say no to payroll, you risk losing the whole account.
Your Options
1. Hire In-House
High overheads
Time-consuming to train
Hard to scale without constant hiring
2. Use Software Only
Still your responsibility
You chase data and handle errors
You deal with HMRC queries
3. Partner With a Payroll Provider (Best Option)
You offer payroll to clients
We do all the work behind the scenes
You choose whether to white-label or refer
How It Works With WorldWage
We handle:
PAYE registration and setup
Weekly/monthly pay runs
Auto-enrolment and pension submissions
RTI filings
Payslip delivery
Starter/leaver forms
Year-end reports (P60, P11D)
You choose:
Referral model – We bill the client
White-label model – You stay the face, we stay invisible
Benefits for Your Firm
Keep control of your client relationship
No payroll training or software needed
No risk of fines or missed deadlines
Scalable for 1 to 100+ clients
Consistent revenue stream
Next Steps
Whether you’re a sole practitioner or a growing firm, you can start offering payroll this month—without building a payroll department.
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