P45 and P60 at a glance
- When
- When you leave a job
- Covers
- 6 April to your leaving date
- Used for
- Your next job, refunds, benefits
- When
- By 31 May each year
- Covers
- The whole tax year to 5 April
- Used for
- Checking tax, mortgages, returns
You get a P60 from every employer you are working for on 5 April, and from a pension provider if you receive a pension. You get a P45 from each employer you leave during the year. Many employers now provide both electronically.
Your P45
A P45 shows your pay and tax from 6 April up to the day you left, and the tax code used on your last payslip. Your employer sends the leaving details to HMRC through payroll and gives you the rest of the form:
- Part 1A is your copy. Keep it.
- Parts 2 and 3 go to your next employer, or to the Jobcentre if you claim benefits.
| Box | What it shows |
|---|---|
| Tax code at leaving date | The code on your final payslip, and whether it was Week 1 or Month 1 |
| Last entries: week or month number | How far into the tax year you were paid |
| Total pay to date | Taxable pay from 6 April, including any earlier jobs if your employer used your previous P45 |
| Total tax to date | Income Tax deducted in the same period |
| Student loan deductions | Whether repayments should continue in your next job |
What to do with a P45
Give parts 2 and 3 to your new employer as soon as you start. Payroll uses the pay and tax to date to carry on your cumulative tax from where your last job stopped, which avoids an emergency tax code.
- Total pay to date6 months£16,000.00
- Tax-free pay for 6 months£12,579 × 6 ÷ 12£6,289.50
- Taxable pay£9,710.50
If you do not have a P45, your new employer will ask you to fill in the starter checklist instead. If you are not going straight into a new job, keep your P45: you may need it to claim a tax refund or benefits.
Your P60
A P60 summarises a whole tax year in one job: your pay, the Income Tax and National Insurance deducted, your final tax code, and any statutory payments such as maternity or sick pay. Your employer must give it to you by 31 May.
You will need it to:
- check you paid the right tax for the year,
- fill in a Self Assessment tax return,
- prove your income for a mortgage, loan or benefit claim, and
- claim back tax, for example on work expenses.
Checking your P60
You can check the tax on your P60 in a few steps. Take your pay, subtract the tax-free amount from your tax code, and work out the tax on the rest using the bands. The calculator above does this for you.
- Pay in this employment£32,000
- Tax-free payCode 1257L£12,579
- Taxable pay at 20%£19,421
- Tax due£3,884.20
Small differences are normal because of rounding and pay dates. A difference of hundreds of pounds usually means a wrong or emergency tax code at some point in the year, or income from another job or pension that shared your allowance.
Scottish taxpayers
Scottish bands change more often than the rest of the UK’s. Check your P60 against the bands for the year it covers: 2025/26 Scottish bands were lower than the 2026/27 ones used in the calculator.
P11D, P800 and payslips
- P11D: shows the taxable value of company benefits, such as a car or private medical insurance. Employers give you the details by 6 July.
- P800: HMRC’s own calculation if you paid too much or too little tax through PAYE. Usually sent between June and the end of November.
- Payslips: show each payment. Your employer must give you one every time you are paid, including the hours if your pay varies with time worked.
Key dates in the tax year
- 6 AprilTax year starts
New tax codes and rates apply.
- 31 MayP60 deadline
Employers must give you a P60 for the year that ended on 5 April.
- 6 JulyP11D deadline
Details of taxable benefits for the previous year.
- June to NovemberP800s are sent
HMRC calculations for PAYE overpayments and underpayments.
- 31 JanuarySelf Assessment deadline
For online returns covering the tax year that ended the previous April.
Lost or missing forms
HMRC cannot issue a replacement P45 or P60. If you lose one, ask your former employer for a copy or a statement of earnings. You can also see your pay and tax for previous years in the HMRC app or your personal tax account, which is often enough for a refund claim or a mortgage application.
If an employer will not give you a P45 when you leave or a P60 by 31 May, they are breaking the law. Ask in writing first; if that fails, contact HMRC.
Expected tax at common salaries
| Pay on P60 | Expected tax |
|---|---|
| £20,000 | £1,484.20 |
| £30,000 | £3,484.20 |
| £45,000 | £6,484.20 |
| £60,000 | £11,428.40 |
These use the payroll allowance of £12,579 for code 1257L. If your P60 shows a figure within a few pounds, your tax is right. Bigger differences usually come from a code that changed during the year.
Tax to date on a P45
| Leaving after | Pay to date | Tax to date |
|---|---|---|
| 3 months (June) | £7,500.00 | £871.05 |
| 6 months (September) | £15,000.00 | £1,742.10 |
| 9 months (December) | £22,500.00 | £2,613.15 |
If the tax to date on your P45 is much higher than this, you may have been on an emergency code. Your next employer will correct it using the P45 figures, or you can claim a refund if you are not working.
Several jobs or pensions
You get a separate P60 from each employer or pension provider you have on 5 April. To check your tax, add up the pay and tax across all of them: your tax-free allowance is shared, so a second job on a BR code will show 20% tax on every pound, which is correct if your main job uses the whole allowance.
Enter your other jobs under More options in the calculator to check the total. The HMRC app shows all your PAYE income for the year in one place.
Using your P60 for a mortgage or return
Lenders usually ask for your latest P60 alongside recent payslips to confirm your income. If you changed jobs recently, you may need your P45 and payslips from the new job instead.
If you fill in a Self Assessment tax return, copy the pay and tax figures from each P60 and P45 into the employment pages. Keep the documents for at least 22 months after the end of the tax year they relate to, or longer if you file late.
What happens to your tax when you leave
Your last employer works out your final pay, including any holiday pay owed, and records your pay and tax to date on your P45. Anything paid after the P45 is issued, such as a late bonus, is taxed using code 0T on a non-cumulative basis, so no tax-free allowance is given against it.
If you then have a gap before your next job, you may have built up unused allowance. Your new employer will use your P45 to give you that allowance, which often means little or no tax on your first payslip. If you do not go back to work in the same tax year, you can claim a refund from HMRC.
Statutory pay and student loans
Your P60 also shows statutory payments made through payroll during the year, such as Statutory Maternity Pay, Statutory Paternity Pay, Statutory Sick Pay and Shared Parental Pay. These are taxable and are already included in your total pay.
Student loan repayments made through payroll are shown separately. Compare them with the balance in your Student Loans Company account: if your income for the year was below your plan’s threshold but repayments were taken, for example because of a bonus month, you can ask for a refund.
How long refunds take
- Through payroll: usually your next payday after HMRC sends your employer a corrected code.
- P800 after the tax year: usually issued between June and the end of November. If you claim online, payment normally arrives within about five working days.
- Claims by post or for earlier years: can take several weeks. You can usually claim for the last four tax years.
You never need to pay a refund company to claim tax back from HMRC; it is free to do yourself.
Checking National Insurance on your P60
Your P60 shows the employee National Insurance taken during the year and the earnings it was charged on, split into bands. National Insurance is worked out on each payment, not over the year, so you cannot check it with a single annual calculation if your pay varied.
For steady monthly pay in 2026/27, it should be about 8% of the pay between £1,048 and £4,189 each month, plus 2% of anything above £4,189. On £32,000 a year paid evenly that is about £1,554 for the year. A month with a large bonus usually means slightly less NI overall, because more of it falls in the 2% band.
The P60 also shows earnings at the Lower Earnings Limit. If those are recorded, the year counts towards your State Pension even if you paid little or no National Insurance. Check your National Insurance record in the HMRC app to make sure each year has been counted.