To think it's an outrage employer isn't financially responsible?

You will be liable for the tax you owe!

This happened to my son with a start up company. They kept saying things were fine they just had a cash flow problem. He never got paid and they folded soon after. Just his experience. Hopefully not yours.

Well, technically you’re not. With no payslip, they’ve just decreased your gross pay and you didn’t realise.
You now need to pay tax on your ‘new, lower’ gross pay, as well as NI.

They have defrauded you and they are defrauding HMRC.

When a Nursery near me shut due to fraud by the owner it was discovered that as there were no proper records and NI etc had not been paid some staff had got top up benefits "fraudulently", had benefits stopped immediately and were threatened with prosecution.
It was sorted out in the end but a very stressful time for the staff affeected who had not only lost their jobs but had that to deal with as well.
It can be more serious than just loss of earnings

What is the companies financial year? Do they have previous accounts filed at Companies House? If so can you see auditors.

I would suggest you contact your MP - they are usually effective at getting HMRC to start an investigation.

Another route might be VAT as unlikely they are filing quarterly..

Just got a £50k investment Who from? One of the directors or a third party?

Is it a company registered at Companies House or a sole trader/ partnership?

What is your role within the business? Have you only just realised that payroll deductions are not being paid across?

The directors are responsible for safeguarding the assets of the company and the control systems. Who is on the board? Are they as young and naive as they sound?

Also action fraud deal with this sort of thing. Not the police. Only call police if organised crime is involved

In response to the point about missing ni payments impacting your pension. I can’t remember the exact number or years contributions you need, but it’s much less than a full working life so one missing year is nothing.
that said you can see your history if you log on to hmrc through government gateway and make a payment in the next couple of years to cover any recent missing years. No need to do it today, tbh you probably can’t do anything before the end of this financial year.

No she’s getting met, that’s the point, why would they give her gross, they want to save money.

I'd be doing some research on this company on Companies House, assuming they've even registered?? Are the directors of the company the ones you would expect to see? Are their returns up to date? What other companies are the directors involved with now or in the past and what was the outcome there? A pattern of liquidations?Google the directors and any past companies. I've seen disqualified directors being able to trade via new companies set up in a spouse's name. Anything fishy might be worth reporting to Companies House.

Op I'd get your ass out of there. It sounds like they are teetering on the edge of bankruptcy. Sooner or later your job will disappear. So your better to start job hunting today.

More urgently than pensions contributions is contributions based job seekers allowance. I can't remember what the rules are but its based on NI contributions in the previous couple of years

Obviously report this a.s.a.p. If NI contributions and tax aren't being paid, it's clearly illegal and the employees will suffer when they have gaps in their records.

I had a similar position a few years back now. The company I worked for was going bust. I’d been getting paid what I expected and my pay slips detailed tax, NI and student loan deductions, but my employer hadn’t actually paid the amounts out for those.

I didn’t have a problem with the tax, as far as HMRC was concerned I had paid what I owed from my salary because it had been deducted as it should have been. The NI I had to check my record online and submit pay slips so that they could get my contributions right. For student loan I also had to send off my pay slips and they adjusted my balance because they’d never received the money from my employer. It was an awful time, I really feel for you OP.

If your employer isn't providing payslips or submitting tax to HMRC, you should report them to the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (Acas) and Acas Helpline for guidance, and also check your Personal Tax Account on the GOV.UK website to verify your employment details are being reported to HMRC. If HMRC is not acting, you need to report tax fraud to them via their dedicated form on the GOV.UK website.

Step-by-Step Action Plan
Check Your Employment Record on GOV.UK:
Log in to your Personal Tax Account on the GOV.UK website to see if your employer is correctly reporting your salary and National Insurance contributions to HMRC.

Report Tax Fraud or Avoidance to HMRC:
If your Personal Tax Account doesn't show your employment information, or you have clear evidence your employer is not paying tax, use the report tax fraud or avoidance form on the GOV.UK website to report your employer.

Contact Acas:
Seek further advice from Acas, a non-profit organization that provides free help and advice on workplace rights and issues. You can contact their helpline to learn about making a formal complaint to an employment tribunal for failing to provide payslips.

Consult a Trade Union or Citizens Advice:
If you are a member of a trade union, contact your representative for support. Alternatively, contact your nearest Citizens Advice for free, impartial advice on your situation.

What to Expect
Acas will advise on employment rights:
Acas can tell you if your employer is breaking the law by not providing payslips or submitting tax.

You can make a claim to an employment tribunal:
If informal steps to resolve the issue fail, you can make a formal claim to an employment tribunal.

HMRC will investigate tax fraud:
If your report is about tax fraud or avoidance, HMRC may investigate your employer.

Contact the ACAS, that sounds dodgy af!

https://taxaid.org.uk/
This is a charity who may be able to give you advice. Citizens Advice would signpost you to them for specialist support.

I agree with other posters that you should contact ACAS immediately:

'Acas gives employees and employers free, impartial advice on workplace rights, rules and best practice. We also offer training and help to resolve disputes.'

www.acas.org.uk/

So your employer is making the deductions for tax and NI from your salary but keeping the money themselves rather than passing it on to HMRC?

Does HMRC realise that or do they think that you have been paid your full salary without deductions which is why they think that it is your responsibility to personally pay them?

I’d phone the ACAS helpline. This is awful.

OP has stated several times that she has only been getting the expected pay after deductions since May, without the legally mandated pay slips. Company is withholding tax and NI and not paying them to HMRC.

I voted YABU because most people in your shoes would have resigned immediately due to the “million reasons” bad working conditions and lack of payment, as things are clearly quite egregious. However now that you have resigned, you have a clearer legal claim and would get different advice from ACAS. It’s a material change in position, if you’re still working as normal, you can be seen as accepting these things ie the conduct wasn’t that bad/legal claims are unclear.

I’m not saying the path forward is going to be easy or straightforward but it’s best to take the least complicated path with employment claims, ie if you’re claiming constructive unfair dismissal due due to the environment or lack of payment; don’t do anything to affirm the contract.

Aren't you getting your gross pay? In which case you will be left no worse off than if you were PAYE.