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What is a P800?

Last reviewed: February 2025

A P800 tax form is the document HMRC uses to tell you that you've paid the wrong amount of tax. If you haven't paid all the tax you owe, HMRC will take action to get the rest of it from you. If you've overpaid, you can get a P800 refund. Either way, the first thing they’ll do is send you a P800 tax form to show their calculations.

Here’s the tricky bit: you’ll only get your P800 refund if HMRC already knows you’re owed money. If you’re paying for work expenses or other essential costs that your employer doesn't cover, your P800 refund won’t include everything you’re due. RIFT are the UK’s leading tax refund experts, and we specialise in putting cash back in your pocket. If you think you could be owed a P800 tax refund, we’ll tell you if you can claim some tax back.

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How do I get one?How do I get a P800 refund?

You'll be sent a P800 tax form if HMRC knows you've paid too much tax. You might also get one if you:

Finished one job and started a new one, and were paid by both employers in the same month.
Started receiving a pension at work.
Received Employment and Support Allowance or Jobseeker's Allowance.

P800 RefundHow to claim a P800 refund from HMRC

If you're sent a P800 from HMRC, it means either:

HMRC thinks your paid too much tax and are due a P800 tax rebate.
HMRC has decided that you’ve paid less tax than you owe.

If the taxman says you've paid too much, you might be able to claim a P800 refund online via the HMRC website: www.gov.uk/p800refund. You can also make a claim via the HMRC app.

Important note: Before the 31st May 2024, if you didn't claim your P800 refund within 21 days, HMRC would just send you a cheque instead. However, these automatic refunds no longer happen, so it’s important to claim back any P800 refunds you're owed.

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P800 Tax RebatesMy P800 says I'm owed a tax rebate, when will I get it?

A P800 tax form can show if you've paid too much tax and are due a tax rebate. Claiming tax back online is usually the fastest way to get your money, and you'll probably get your refund in under a week.

If your P800 form says that HMRC’s going to send you a cheque, then there’s no need for you to do anything. Within about 2 weeks of the date on the calculation they sent you, you should have your P800 refund in your hands. When HMRC decides to handle your refund this way, you can’t choose to get your money by bank transfer instead. Because of this, it’s essential that you make sure they have the correct address for you.

If your tax calculation says you need to claim your P800 refund online, then you’ve got a few things to take care of before you get your money. You can do it:

Via HMRC’s online bank transfer service. You’ll need your P800 and proof of your identity to do this. You should have your refund within 5 working days.
On the HMRC app, where you can ask for your refund as a bank transfer.
By logging into your Personal Tax Account on the HMRC website. Again, you can get a bank transfer this way.
By phoning HMRC and asking them to send you a cheque. P800 refunds claimed this way generally arrive within 6 weeks.

Obviously, HMRC can only pay you back for overpayments they know about. If you’ve got work expenses that qualify for a tax rebate, you’ll need to claim for them yourself. RIFT Tax Refunds can help you claim back your tax and ensure you get all the money you’re owed. We've claimed back well over £399 million in tax refunds from HMRC since 1999, so you're in the best possible hands.

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Are you paying too much tax to HMRC?

It's important to keep a close eye on your money to make sure you never pay a penny more in tax than you should. In this video we'll help you:

Understand how tax works
Practice good tax habits
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I owe HMRC some taxMy P800 says I owe tax. Can I pay it online?

If it looks like you owe HMRC some tax—firstly, don't panic. Check through the calculation to make sure you understand it. If you do owe tax, HMRC will either collect it automatically through your PAYE tax code or ask you to pay directly. Either way, they'll let you know what they're doing and what they expect from you.

The taxman may decide to collect what you owe automatically if:

You pay your Income Tax either through your employer or a pension provider.
You earn enough (after your Personal Allowance) to cover what you owe.
The amount you owe is under £3,000.

In some cases, HMRC might send you a PA302 form instead when they think you owe any extra Income Tax from your PAYE earnings. This is also known as a ‘Simple Assessment’ tax bill. For example, you might get a Simple Assessment form if you:

Owe over £3,000 in tax.
Need to pay tax on your State Pension.
Owe Income Tax that can’t be collected automatically.

If you get a Simple Assessment tax bill, you can pay it online either through your bank account or a debit or corporate credit card. You can’t use a personal credit card for this, but you can pay by cheque instead, if necessary. Click the link below to read more.

HMRC say I have underpaid tax

P800When do HMRC send out P800s?

HMRC will send out P800 tax forms after the end of the tax year (the 5th of April). However, since the taxman's wheels tend to turn pretty slowly, you'll usually get your P800 between June and the end of November.

What is a P800?I've got more than one P800 tax form. How do I work out the tax refund I'm owed?d I'm owed?

When you're claiming a tax rebate for things like travel to temporary workplaces, you might receive a few P800s. You can claim tax rebates for up to 4 years, so you could find yourself dealing with up to 4 forms.

The main thing to understand is that each form includes the calculations from the previous years. Don't go adding up the numbers in each and expecting a huge refund. The P800 from the final year of your refund claim should give you the real total.

Don't throw the previous forms away, though. You might need to check through them if you think the calculations are wrong.

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P800 RefundWhat should I do if I think my P800 is wrong?

Occasionally, you might find yourself with a P800 that looks wrong. This can happen because HMRC’s P800 tax calculations are only as accurate as the information they’re based on. Getting these problems sorted quickly is really important, because it’s the only way to make sure you get the P800 tax refund you’re owed. Worse still, if HMRC sends you a P800 refund that you aren’t due, you can end up with penalties if you don’t tell them about it.

The first thing to do is go through your P800 form carefully to track down the problem. Check the details against your P60, P45 and/or P11D forms. Look closely at the figures to make sure HMRC hasn't used any estimates in the calculations. If you still think it looks wrong, get on the phone to HMRC as soon as possible or talk to a tax expert.

If HMRC doesn’t have all the information it needs to work out the tax you owe, it sometimes uses estimated figures. You’ll need some documents to double-check their homework, like:

Your P60s and P45s for the years in question.
Any P11D forms you have showing the benefits and expenses you’ve received.
Statements from your bank or building society to check the interest you’ve earned.

If you’re getting any taxable state benefits, you’ll also want to compare HMRC’s figures with your own records. There’s a chance that some of those types of income will be lumped together as a single, combined total. If the number doesn’t look right, you should be able to get a full breakdown from HMRC or by checking your Personal Tax Account.

When you’ve arranged to pay through the PAYE system for any otherwise untaxed income, (like rent, for instance, if you’re letting out property), you might find HMRC has used estimated figures to calculate your tax. This can mean your PAYE tax code changes, and might not change back when you stop getting that income. Check the numbers HMRC has been working from, and kick up a fuss if they’re wrong.

At the same time, it’s worth putting some thought into anything HMRC might have missed. The taxman can only work with the information he has, and might not be up to date on things like:

Any Gift Aid donations you might have made.
Any contributions you’ve put into your pension.
Your taxable state benefits and savings income.
Any deductions or employment expenses you’re allowed to claim for, such as business use of your own vehicle.

While you’re at it, check that you’re getting the proper benefit from things like the Marriage Allowance or Blind Person’s Allowance, if you and/or your spouse qualify for them.

Equally, you have to keep in mind any allowances HMRC has included in their calculation that you might not qualify for any more. Again, these might have led to a change in your tax code at some point, so check everything’s been recorded correctly.

One more tricky little wrinkle that might complicate your P800 calculation is if you’re paid weekly. Basically, the way the calendar shakes out, some years might see you being paid 53 times instead of 52. Depending on your employer, that extra week’s pay might still factor your standard Personal Allowance into it, meaning you get a week’s tax relief that you technically didn’t qualify for over the year. Check your P60 to see if there’s a ‘week 53 indicator’ listed.

P800 RefundWhat information is on my P800?

The P800 tax form is pretty straightforward. It shows the total income you've had for the year and the tax you've paid on it. It will also list some essential extra information, like your tax-free Personal Allowance and any allowable expenses you've shelled out. At the bottom, it will tell you how much tax you either owe or are owed back.

P800 Tax RefundI didn't get a P800. Does that mean I can't claim a tax refund?

No, it really doesn’t. HMRC will only send you a P800 form when they KNOW you’ve paid the wrong amount of tax. You might still be owed tax back for work expenses that vary from year to year, like travel to temporary workplaces. The taxman won’t know about those unless you specifically tell him. That’s why you need to keep records and claim your tax rebate each year—particularly if your job involves a lot of time on the road. Construction and Armed Forces work, for example, can mean a lot of mileage. If you’re not claiming back the tax you’re owed, you’re probably paying hundreds of pounds too much each year to the taxman!

Need more help?

Wondering if you can claim a tax refund or need to submit a tax return? Use our online tools to find out if you're owed money by HMRC.

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What is a P800?​