P60 (UK)
A year-end certificate that UK employers must give to every employee on their payroll on April 5, summarizing total pay and deductions for the full tax year.
What Is a P60?
Key Takeaways
- ✓A P60 is an end-of-year certificate that shows an employee's total earnings, income tax paid, National Insurance contributions, and student loan deductions for the tax year (April 6 to April 5).
- ✓Employers must issue P60s to all employees on the payroll as of April 5 by May 31. There are no exceptions.
- ✓Employees need their P60 for Self Assessment tax returns, mortgage applications, loan applications, benefit claims, and pension calculations.
- ✓Unlike P45s, employers can issue duplicate P60s if the original is lost, though they should be clearly marked as duplicates.
- ✓P60s have been available in digital format since 2010, but employers must ensure employees can access and print their electronic P60.
A P60 is your annual tax receipt from your employer. It confirms exactly how much you earned and how much tax and National Insurance you paid during the tax year that just ended. Every UK employer must give a P60 to every employee who was on their payroll on April 5 (the last day of the tax year). The deadline is May 31. The P60 serves as the employee's official proof of income and tax paid. Banks ask for it during mortgage applications. Accountants need it for Self Assessment tax returns. The Department for Work and Pensions may request it when processing benefit claims. And employees need it if they think they've overpaid tax and want to claim a refund. Before RTI, the P60 was the definitive document linking employee earnings to HMRC records. Now that employers report pay in real time via FPS, HMRC already has the data. But the P60 remains a legal requirement because it gives employees their own verified record of annual earnings and deductions. The employer can't just point them to HMRC's online tax account and call it done.
Information Shown on a P60
A P60 contains a standardized set of fields that summarize the full tax year's payroll data for each employee.
| Field | What It Shows |
|---|---|
| Employer name and PAYE reference | Identifies the employer and their HMRC registration |
| Employee name and NI number | Identifies the employee |
| Tax code | The final tax code used in the last pay period of the year |
| Total pay (taxable) | Gross pay subject to income tax for the full year |
| Total tax deducted | Income tax deducted through PAYE during the year |
| Employee NI contributions | Total employee NI paid in the year |
| Employer NI contributions | Total employer NI paid (shown on some P60 formats) |
| Statutory pay | Statutory Sick Pay, Statutory Maternity Pay, etc. (if applicable) |
| Student loan deductions | Total student loan repayments deducted during the year |
| Postgraduate loan deductions | Total postgraduate loan repayments (if applicable) |
| NI category letter | The NI category used (A, B, C, H, M, etc.) |
When Employees Need Their P60
P60s serve as proof of income in several situations throughout the year and beyond.
Self Assessment tax returns
Employees who file a Self Assessment tax return (typically those earning over GBP 100,000, company directors, or those with additional income) need their P60 to complete the employment section. The P60 figures must match what's reported on the tax return. Discrepancies trigger HMRC inquiries. While HMRC's online system pre-populates some employment figures, the P60 remains the employee's verification document.
Mortgage and loan applications
Lenders routinely request the last 2 to 3 years of P60s as proof of income. The P60 is preferred over payslips because it shows the full year's earnings, including bonuses and overtime, in a single document. Some lenders accept payslips for the last 3 months as an alternative, but P60s carry more weight because they represent a verified annual total.
Tax refund claims
If an employee believes they've overpaid tax (common when they start a new job mid-year without a P45 or have been on an emergency tax code), the P60 provides the evidence needed to claim a refund from HMRC. Without it, the refund process takes longer because HMRC must verify the figures through their own records.
Pension and benefit calculations
State pension entitlement depends on NI contributions. The P60 confirms what was paid each year. Private pension providers may also request P60s when calculating benefits, especially for defined benefit schemes. The Department for Work and Pensions asks for P60s when processing certain benefit claims, and HMRC recommends keeping P60s for at least 22 years to support pension claims later in life.
Employer Obligations for P60s
Issuing P60s is a non-negotiable employer responsibility with strict rules on timing and format.
- Issue a P60 to every employee on your payroll on April 5. Part-time employees, employees on maternity leave, employees on sick leave, and directors all get P60s if they were employed on that date.
- The deadline is May 31 following the end of the tax year. For the 2024-25 tax year (ending April 5, 2025), P60s must be with employees by May 31, 2025.
- P60s can be issued in paper or electronic format. If electronic, employees must be able to access and print them. Simply emailing a PDF is acceptable if the employee can download and store it.
- The P60 format must contain all mandatory fields specified by HMRC. Most payroll software generates compliant P60s automatically.
- Don't issue a P60 to an employee who left before April 5. They received a P45 instead, which covers their earnings up to their leaving date. The P60 is exclusively for employees still on the payroll at year end.
- Retain copies of all P60s issued for at least 3 years after the end of the tax year they relate to. HMRC may request copies during compliance checks.
P60 vs P45: Key Differences
These two forms often get confused, but they serve completely different purposes in the PAYE system.
| Feature | P60 | P45 |
|---|---|---|
| When issued | End of tax year (by May 31) | When employee leaves employment |
| Who receives it | Employees on payroll on April 5 | Employees who leave during the year |
| Period covered | Full tax year (April 6 to April 5) | Start of tax year to leaving date |
| Shows NI contributions | Yes | No |
| Can duplicates be issued | Yes (marked as duplicate) | No |
| Number of parts | 1 (single document) | 4 parts (for HMRC, employee, new employer) |
| Given to new employer | No | Yes (Parts 2 and 3) |
| Shows student loan deductions | Yes | Only indicates whether deductions were made |
Electronic P60s: Rules and Best Practices
Most employers now issue P60s electronically. HMRC allows this, but with conditions.
HMRC requirements for electronic P60s
The electronic P60 must contain all the same information as the paper version. Employees must be able to print or save a copy. The employer must ensure the employee actually receives and can access the P60. Sending it to a work email that the employee can't access (e.g., because they're on long-term leave) doesn't count. If an employee specifically requests a paper P60, HMRC says the employer should provide one, though there's no explicit legal obligation to do so.
Distribution methods
Common distribution methods include: self-service payroll portals where employees log in to view and download their P60, email with PDF attachment, HR information systems with document storage, and secure intranets. Whichever method you choose, verify that every employee has actually received their P60 by May 31. A distribution log or read receipt helps demonstrate compliance if HMRC asks.
What to Do if a P60 Is Lost
If an employee loses their P60, they should first check their online HMRC account. Since 2014, most employed individuals can view their Pay and Income tax records through HMRC's Personal Tax Account, which shows annual earnings and tax paid for each employment. If they need an actual P60 document, they should contact their employer (or former employer) and request a replacement. Employers can issue duplicate P60s. These should be clearly marked "duplicate" or "replacement" to distinguish them from the original. There's no HMRC penalty for issuing a duplicate, and there's no limit on how many duplicates can be issued. Former employers are not legally required to issue replacement P60s for past tax years, but most will do so as a matter of good practice. If the employer no longer exists or refuses to help, the employee can use HMRC's online tax account records or request a statement of earnings and tax paid directly from HMRC.
Penalties for P60 Non-Compliance
HMRC can penalize employers who don't meet their P60 obligations, though enforcement tends to focus on patterns of non-compliance rather than isolated incidents.
Failure to issue
Not providing a P60 to an eligible employee by May 31 is a PAYE regulation breach. HMRC can impose penalties of up to GBP 300 per employee per occurrence, with additional daily penalties of up to GBP 60 per employee per day for continued failure after an initial penalty notice. These penalty powers are rarely used for isolated incidents but come into play when HMRC identifies systematic failures during employer compliance reviews.
Inaccurate information
P60 figures that don't match the employer's RTI submissions raise red flags with HMRC. If the P60 shows different pay or tax figures than what was reported via FPS, HMRC investigates. Careless inaccuracies can result in penalties of up to 30% of the potential lost revenue. Deliberate inaccuracies carry penalties of up to 100%. Most discrepancies result from payroll errors that are corrected through an Earlier Year Update (EYU) or a revised FPS.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I get a P60 if I left my job before April 5?
My P60 figures don't match my payslips. What should I do?
How long should I keep my P60?
Can I get P60 information from HMRC directly?
Do company directors get a P60?
Written by Adithyan RK