Whether you’re new to contracting or simply looking to switch providers, Umbrella.co.uk is here to deliver expert, compliant, and great-value payroll services tailored to contractors.
With over 16 years of experience in umbrella payroll, we’ve supported hundreds of thousands of contractors just like you — ensuring you get paid accurately, on time, and without hassle.
While our team is always on hand to answer questions, we keep things simple. From registering with us online to accessing your payslips through your secure portal, our aim is to make your time with us — whether short-term or long-term — smooth and stress-free.
We’re here to support you at every stage of your contracting journey. Take a moment to explore this guide to see how our umbrella service works, and remember — our friendly customer support team is always ready to help.
Thank you for taking the time to read through our Welcome Guide.
It’s designed to walk you through the processes involved in working through an umbrella company and to answer any key questions you may have as you get started.
When you registered with Umbrella.co.uk, our New Business Team collected your personal and contract details. However, please note that we cannot legally process your payroll until a few essential steps are completed. To ensure there are no delays in receiving your first payment, please make sure you have:
These will have been emailed to you after you have registered. To accept the terms, you simply need to open the e-mail, click reply and type ‘I accept’ and send the email back to us.
This is a copy of your passport or other permitted documentation (driver’s licence or birth certificate).
If you are a non-UK or EU National, you’ll need to provide us with a copy of your passport and eligibility to work in the UK (residence permit or visa). From October 2022, you will also require a Home Office Share Code.
This can be a payslip, P60, P45, NI card, or a letter from HMRC confirming your National Insurance number.
Once you’ve correctly submitted your timesheet to your agency or end client, the next step is payment. After the agency processes their payroll, they transfer your payment to us. This is what we use to calculate your salary and make your payment, along with any applicable deductions like tax and National Insurance.
We run payroll every working day, with multiple payrolls processed on Thursdays and Fridays. Our aim is to pay out any funds received for you on the same day they arrive. If funds are received in the afternoon, payment is typically made the following working day. This helps ensure you get paid promptly and reliably.
If your payment is processed on a Monday or Tuesday, you will receive the funds the same day. Payments made on a Wednesday typically clear two working days later. If we process your pay on a Thursday, the funds will clear on Friday morning. Payments made on a Friday will clear into your account by the end of Friday afternoon.
You will be paid a contract rate for your assignment, which we invoice to your agency or end client. Once the invoice is settled, we deduct and pay all relevant employment costs — including Employer’s National Insurance, the Apprenticeship Levy, and any Employer’s Pension Contribution (where applicable) — directly to HMRC from the invoice income.
These deductions are clearly displayed on the reconciliation statement provided with your payslip, which also confirms you are being paid at or above the National Minimum Wage.
In some cases, you may be eligible to claim contract-related expenses, which can be reimbursed from gross income. Any approved pre-tax deductions will reduce your PAYE and Employee’s National Insurance liability.
Our Umbrella.co.uk margin and Employer’s National Insurance are automatically deducted pre-tax, lowering your taxable pay. Any voluntary pension contributions through salary sacrifice will also be treated as gross deductions.
A payslip is a breakdown of your weekly or monthly pay, showing how your earnings have been calculated. It details your gross pay, any deductions such as Income Tax, National Insurance, pension contributions, and the umbrella company margin, along with your final net pay. Your payslip also includes key information like the tax period, payment date, and year-to-date figures — helping you stay informed and compliant with HMRC requirements.
Please see below for a breakdown of what to expect to see on your payslip:
Employment law requires employees to receive a minimum amount of pay for each hour worked. This is National Minimum Wage (currently £12.21), and the basic pay element of your wages is therefore the number of hours worked multiplied by £12.21. National Minimum Wage is usually revised annually in April.
Because you are entitled to it. The holiday pay element is included in your assignment rate by your agency. We pay it to you in advance each week instead of saving it for you and paying you it when you take holiday. You can however elect for us to retain it and pay it to you at your request.
Additional pay is the part of your pay that is left once the basic pay and holiday pay elements have been worked out and set aside. It is the balance of your wage.
The tax period refers to the specific week or month in the tax year in which your payment falls. The UK tax year starts on 6th April and is divided into 52 weekly or 12 monthly periods. Each time you’re paid, your payslip will show which tax period that payment relates to. This helps HMRC calculate how much tax you owe and ensures that deductions are made accurately throughout the year.
The “Week Ending” date refers to the final day of the timesheet period being paid, usually aligning with the last working day of that week (commonly a Friday or Sunday). It helps determine which hours or days worked are included in that specific payroll run. This ensures your pay is calculated correctly based on the approved timesheet for that period.
This refers to the amount of income tax deducted from your gross pay, calculated based on your earnings and tax code. The umbrella company deducts this on your behalf and pays it directly to HMRC, ensuring you’re fully compliant with UK tax regulations.
This is the amount deducted from your pay for employee’s National Insurance (NI) contributions. These contributions go towards funding state benefits like the NHS, State Pension, and other social security entitlements. The umbrella company calculates and pays this directly to HMRC on your behalf.
This is the amount automatically deducted from your pay and contributed to your workplace pension scheme. It helps you save for retirement and is usually matched in part by employer contributions. You’ll be auto-enrolled into our pension scheme after 12 weeks with the option to leave within 30 days of receiving your welcome pack.
This is the amount you receive in your bank account after all deductions have been made, including tax, National Insurance, pension contributions, and the umbrella company’s margin. It represents your final take-home pay.
Your total gross pay may be lower than the value of the hours you worked because the costs of the payroll service — including the employer’s National Insurance contribution and the Apprenticeship Levy — have already been deducted from your assignment rate. These deductions are made before calculating your pay, which helps reduce the overall amount of tax and National Insurance that needs to be paid.
A reconciliation statement provides a clear summary of how the funds received from your agency or end client are distributed. It shows the total invoice amount, outlines all employment costs such as Employer’s National Insurance, Apprenticeship Levy, and pension contributions (if applicable), and confirms your gross and net pay. This document offers full transparency, helping you understand exactly how your take-home pay has been calculated and ensuring compliance with HMRC rules.
Please see below for a breakdown of your Reconciliation Statement:
This refers to the number of hours or days you’ve worked during the relevant pay period, based on the timesheet submitted.
The rate is your agreed assignment rate per hour or day, which includes your gross pay and all employment costs.
These are the statutory employment costs deducted from your assignment rate before calculating your taxable earnings. They include the margin, Employer’s NIC, pension contributions, and the Apprenticeship Levy.
This is the fixed amount Umbrella.co.uk retains to cover the cost of processing your payroll and providing ongoing support and benefits.
The National Insurance contribution that all employers must pay on your earnings, calculated based on the assignment rate.
If you’ve been auto-enrolled or have chosen to make salary sacrifice contributions, these will be shown here as employer contributions.
This is the portion of your pay set aside for statutory holiday entitlement. It may be paid as you earn it or accrued, depending on your preference.
A government-mandated charge on employers with a pay bill over a certain threshold. It’s calculated as 0.5% of your gross earnings and paid to HMRC.
This is the total amount before income tax and employee National Insurance are deducted. It includes holiday pay and any pension contributions you’ve chosen to make.
Your agency may require you to submit an invoice for the week’s or month’s work, depending on your pay period. WE DO THIS FOR YOU! All you need to do each week is visit our online timesheet and expenses pages. This is accessed by visiting –
www.eezytime.co.uk/meritportal – or by using the top login drop-down menu at www.umbrella.co.uk. You should have received your username and password by email but if you can’t find them just give us a call on 01625 546 610 and we can send them to you. Once you have logged in you can navigate to the ‘Timesheets’ link and submit your hours. Once you have submitted the hours, Umbrella.co.uk will create an invoice for you and email it to your agency to start the payment process.
In certain circumstances, you may be eligible to be reimbursed for your contract-related expenses. You can ask about this during your initial consultation with us or, if you did not do so, call us on 01625 546 610 so we can advise you.
If you’re a contractor worker and would like to refer a friend or colleague to Umbrella.co.uk, we will give you and the person you refer a £40 Amazon voucher when they are paid for the first time. If you refer someone to our accountancy services, you could get up to £200 in shopping vouchers for every successful referral.
A worker may be eligible to claim mileage expenses if their client requires them to travel between different worksites during the working day. However, this does not apply when travelling between multiple locations operated by the same client. Additionally, travel from home to the first worksite and from the final site back home is classed as commuting and is not claimable.
Eligible mileage expenses can be easily submitted through the Umbrella.co.uk online portal for processing.
Reimbursed expenses are costs your client agrees to cover, such as travel or overnight accommodation incurred while fulfilling your contract. These expenses should be claimed through your agency at the same time you submit your timesheets, as they are added to the invoice raised to your agency or client alongside your worked hours.
Once received by Umbrella.co.uk, reimbursed expenses are paid to you tax-free in full as part of your weekly wage. It’s important to clarify with your client at the start of the contract which expenses are reimbursable to avoid any confusion. Umbrella.co.uk will also request copies of receipts to support your claim.
Other allowable expenses that aren’t reimbursed by your client or processed through your umbrella payroll may still be claimed directly from HMRC. You can do this by submitting a P87 form or through your annual Self Assessment tax return. These may include costs such as uniform, tools, or professional subscriptions, depending on your circumstances. Click here for more information.
Umbrella.co.uk is a fully compliant umbrella company committed to safeguarding our contractors and operating to the highest industry standards.
We take the accuracy of mileage claims seriously. To support your claims, we require postcodes for all journeys and fuel receipts that cover a minimum of £1.40 for every 10 miles travelled. Provided you retain and submit a fuel receipt each time you fill your vehicle, this requirement is typically satisfied. If insufficient receipts are submitted, we will contact you to explain the issue — and mileage claims may be suspended until resolved.
Most expense types require valid receipts for processing. If you intend to claim any allowable expenses from HMRC at year-end, you should keep copies of all receipts throughout your contract.
To ensure compliance, we regularly conduct random audits of submitted expense claims. Any claims found to be inaccurate or fraudulent will be disallowed or reversed, and any resulting tax shortfall will be recovered from your next payment. If no further payments are due, we will submit a P11D to HMRC to correct your tax record.
Knowingly submitting false claims may also lead to disciplinary action.
Umbrella Rewards Pro is our exciting and exclusive rewards benefits platform powered by Boostworks. Contractor employees will have the opportunity to upgrade their service and benefit from:
You‘ll get access to a BHSF Health Cash plan, with 24/7 GP phone appointments, a 24/7 counselling line, and cash back on everyday healthcare such as optical (up to £60), dental (up to £60), therapies (up to £150), and more.
Access discounted fuel with Assist Protect, where you can save 4p per litre at Shell stations up and down the country.
Using our app (powered by Boostworks), you gain access to exclusive discounts and cashback offers at many of the UK’s leading supermarkets, retailers, and restaurants, including Asda, Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Primark, ASOS, and Just Eat, with new offers being added all the time.
Enter monthly lottery draws and competitions to be in with the chance of winning thousands of pounds and incredible prizes.
When you come to the end of your contract, you will probably have three options presented to you. They are:
With option 1, if you are working with the same agency you simply need to email us your new contract details to customer.services@umbrella.co.uk so we can amend our system.
If you are changing agencies, simply email us the new agency contact details to newsignups@umbrella.co.uk and we will sort out the paperwork for you. Remember the importance of employment tenure, see below.
For options 2 and 3, you will require a P45 from us. Please get in touch with Customer Services so we can send you the necessary form to formally make the P45 request.
If you secure a new contract through a different agency, they may suggest switching umbrella companies. The good news is — with Umbrella.co.uk, there’s no need to switch! Staying with us not only saves you time and hassle but also protects your continuous employment record — a key factor when applying for mortgages, loans, and accessing statutory benefits like maternity or paternity pay.
Umbrella.co.uk is already an Approved or Preferred Supplier for most recruitment agencies across the UK.
If we’re not listed by your new agency, don’t worry — just email our dedicated team at newsignups@umbrella.co.uk with the agency name and contact details, and we’ll take care of the rest.
If you’d like to get in touch with us, we’re available by telephone (Mon–Thurs: 09:00–17:30, Fri: 08:30–17:30), email, or live chat. We recommend using our live chat feature for the fastest and most convenient support — you can speak with our team while continuing with your day-to-day tasks.
You’ll also find a wide range of helpful guidance and frequently asked questions in the Help section of our website, accessible from the top menu.