Generating FPS (Full Payment Submission) or EPS (Employer Payment Summary) files is essential for reporting payroll information to HMRC. However, if you encounter issues with the control report, exceptions report, FPS XML file, or FPS CSV file not appearing in the reports centre, it can be because of several issues.
We’ve compiled a list of possible causes to check and how to resolve them.
FPS RTI file error
When generating the FPS RTI file, you may see the following warning:
"Warning - At least one character in the source file could not be properly converted to a character in the database character set. Replacement characters have been used. Check your data for corruption."
This warning typically arises due to a special character in an employee's address. To resolve this issue, check the addresses of newly added employees or those who have recently changed their addresses.
To do this, follow the steps below in portal.
From the dashboard menu, select People management.
Click Dashboard then beside employees, click VIEW.
In the Search field, search for the employee, then click VIEW.
Click Contact Information then click ACTIONS.
Click Personnel Profile then highlight the relevant address detail.
Click the three-dot icon then click Edit Address Details.
Click Save then regenerate the FPS file.
If you cannot find the applicable employee, please raise a new case online and reference the title of this article. Include the following details:
Applicable pay group code.
Payroll period
Old XML file
An old XML file in the background may block the generation process.
To resolve this, a support analyst will need to investigate the log file. Please raise a new case online and reference the title of this article. Include the following details:
The relevant pay group
Payroll period
Discrepancy in employee RTI numbers
There may be duplicate RTI numbers for employees in the background, which could block the generation process.
To resolve this, a support analyst will need to investigate the log file. Please raise a new case online and reference the title of this article. Include the following details:
The relevant pay group
Payroll period