Year-end FAQs
Why is the process not automatic?
The process is not automatic because we rely on you to provide us with certain information to complete year-end. For example, you receive energy bills relating to your office and you then provide us with the relevant information, such as the dates the bill covers, and we use that to allocate the cost to the correct financial year.
What do you do if you're not sure how to complete a form?
You can attend one of our four live webinars or watch our recorded version.
How do you find out your current financial position?
You can run the budget v expenditure report.
What if you purchase goods on 31 March 2025?
Goods should be allocated to the year in which they are received. If you purchase goods on 31 March 2025, we would assume it is delivered the next day and should be moved to the 2025-26 financial year. You will need to include these kinds of transactions on your year-end form. You cannot spend money this year for goods received in the next financial year. Check the guidance for a detailed flowchart to help you work out all the circumstances in which you may need to complete a form.
What if you purchase goods on 30 March 2025?
If you pay for goods on 30 March 2025, we will take the received date to be 31 March and so the costs will be automatically allocated to this financial year.
Do you complete a single form for all your expenditure?
Yes. Add as many lines to the form as you need, but you only need to complete one form for all your spend.
The MPs’ Staff Conference, organised by the House of Commons, is taking place on 19 March. What do you do with your claims relating to travel and subsistence for the conference?
Any claims for travel and subsistence for the conference will relate to goods received before 31 March, given the event is on 19 March. As a result, the costs will come out of the current financial year. Please remember that any costs on the payment card on or after 25 March may be included in your April transactions and therefore will not be available to reconcile until early May, which in turn may interfere with your ability to reconcile by year-end.
What happens if you spend more than the budget?
After the year-end process is completed, if the budget has been exceeded, the MP will need to repay the 'overspend'. Your account manager will be in contact if this happens and would explore beforehand all possible ways to reduce the financial burden.
Should you worry about exceeding one/some of your budget(s)?
You may not need to worry. Remember we may have to allocate some costs to the 2025-26 financial year and you may request this also in your year-end form. You also have the ability to move costs to another budget. For example, costs for staff training can come out of the office costs budget or the staffing budget. Some costs (for example, pooled services or staff training) may also be movable into another budget. After accounting for this, if you are still worried, please contact your account manager, who will be able to help you forecast.
Forms, reports and checking budget status
How can I check my budget status?
The business costs breakdown report specifically shows you all items marked against the selected budget, which includes claims, payment card lines, direct payments, payroll costs, and credit notes.
The budget v expenditure and business costs breakdown reports can show you how much you’ve spent against each budget. Remember that these do not show real-time expenditure.
How can I see last year’s spend on IPSA Online?
To access last year's spend on your IPSA Online dashboard, go to - ‘information pages’ and select ‘MPS - Dashboard 2024-25 MP Dashboard’.
What do I do if I’ve made an error with a claim?
If you’ve made any errors, for example, if you’ve selected the incorrect budget type or expense type.
To do this, you will need to submit a direct payment correction form on IPSA Online.
You have until 25 April to submit a direct payment correction form.
Office rent and costs
What do I need to do if we only found an office at the end of March?
Goods must be allocated to the year they are received. For example, if you moved in to a new office at the end of March and ordered desks and chairs that were delivered in April, these will relate to the 2025-26 financial year.
You do not need to add them to a year-end form and they cannot be moved back to the previous financial year.
However, if you're paying for utility bills such as gas, electricity, or business rates that covered part of March, you can move those costs back. You will need to submit a year-end form to tell us to move those costs.
What do I need to do if my start-up supplement of £6,000 has been rolled over?
This was only available for MPs who did not find an office by 31 January 2025. If you were in this position and your start-up supplement has been rolled over, there’s nothing further you need to do. That has been added to your 2025-26 budget.
Refunds
What should I do if I’ve received a refund on my payment card?
If you have already reconciled the original cost, you should reconcile the refund as you would normally reconcile any payment card line.
What if I haven’t reconciled the original cost yet?
If the refund is on your payment card and you haven’t yet reconciled the original cost, reconcile both the cost and the refund as you would normally reconcile any payment card line. Don’t forget to add a note confirming that the refund relates to the cost.
I want to repay IPSA – what do I need to do?
Complete the repayment form on IPSA Online and clearly state which cost the repayment refers to. If the refund relates to the 2024–25 financial year, also include it on your year-end form.
Can I mark a refund as ‘not claimed, to be repaid’?
No. Refunds must be properly recorded and linked to the relevant cost, either through reconciliation or repayment.
Costs not yet paid/claimed
Can I include estimated costs for 2024–25 on my year-end form?
Yes. If you know you’ll be paying a cost related to 2024–25 in April (or very early May), you can include it on your year-end form using an estimate if you don’t yet know the exact amount.
When is the last day to reconcile payment card lines before the 9 May payment card deadline?
To ensure payment card reconciliation are processed in time, you should do this no later than 7 May.
What if I use my payment card in April for a good or service relating to the 2024-25 financial year?
If you paid in April for goods or services that were used in the previous financial year, then you must include it in your year-end form.
All payment card lines for April will be uploaded at the start of May and must be reconciled by 9 May.
What happens if I don’t receive a bill before 9 May?
If a utility bill, for example, doesn’t arrive before 9 May and you pay using your payment card in May (or possibly in the last few days of April), we strongly encourage you to estimate the cost using previous usage as a guide.
If, for any reason, you don’t receive the bill by 9 May, it will not be possible to allocate the cost to the previous financial year. We will be able to discuss this with you as part of the contingency process.
Overspends
What happens if I overspend my budget?
You can only overspend on your capped budgets, such as staffing, office costs, and accommodation. The travel budget is uncapped.
If an overspend is identified, we will be in touch to explore your options once all year-end information has been reviewed. We expect this to take place from June onwards. Any overspend that is identified will need to be repaid by the end of October.
How can the debt be repaid?
Repayment can be made in one of the following ways:
Direct bank transfer
Offset against future claims (only if the debt is under £100)
Salary deductions (if over £300, this will usually be spread over a few months)