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What is a P60?

Last reviewed April 2026

A P60 is an end of year PAYE form that shows how much you were paid by an employer and how much tax was taken from your pay during the tax year, which runs from 6th April to 5th April. If you are still working for that employer on 5th April, they must give you a P60 by 31st May, either on paper or electronically.

It is one of those documents that can seem fairly unremarkable until you suddenly need it. A P60 can help you check your records, prove how much tax you have paid, and pull together the right details for things like a mortgage application, benefits paperwork, or a wider check of whether the right amount of tax has been taken. GOV.UK also says you may need it to claim back overpaid tax.

What Does A P60 Show?

Your P60 gives you a year-end summary for that job. GOV.UK says it shows the tax you have paid on your salary in the tax year, and employer guidance says it summarises total pay and deductions for the year.

That makes it useful because it brings the main year-end figures together in one place. If your payslips, tax code notices or HMRC records do not seem to line up, your P60 is usually one of the first places to start. It will not tell you everything on its own, but it can help you spot when something needs a closer look.

When Do You Get A P60?

You should receive your P60 after the end of the tax year if you were still working for that employer on 5th April. Your employer must give it to you by 31st May.

You also get a separate P60 for each job. So if you had more than one PAYE job and were still employed in each of them on 5th April, you should receive more than one P60.

This is one of the points that often causes confusion. If you do not get a P60 from an old job, that does not always mean something has gone wrong. It may simply mean you left that job before the end of the tax year, in which case you would usually get a P45 instead.

Who Gets A P60?

P60s are for employees. GOV.UK says you only get forms such as a P45, P60 and P11D if you are an employee.

If you are fully self-employed and do not have PAYE income, you would not normally get a P60. Your tax affairs would usually be handled differently, often through Self Assessment. If you are both employed and self-employed, you may still get a P60 for the employed part of your income.

Why Is A P60 Important?

For most people, a P60 is the clearest year-end record of pay and tax for a job. GOV.UK says you may need it to prove how much tax you have paid, and the same page notes that you may need it when claiming back overpaid tax.

It can also be reassuring in a practical sense. If you are trying to understand whether your tax code has been right, whether your yearly totals make sense, or whether a job change has affected your tax, the P60 gives you a solid starting point. It is often much easier to make sense of things when you have that full-year view in front of you.

What Should You Check On Your P60?

Start with the basics. Check your name, National Insurance number, employer details and tax code. If one of those is wrong, it can lead to confusion later, especially if you are trying to compare your own records with HMRC’s. GOV.UK’s online tax tools let you check your tax code and current year tax details if something does not look right.

Then check the yearly totals. Your pay and tax figures should broadly match your payslips and your understanding of that tax year. If they do not, it is worth looking into it rather than assuming it will sort itself out. Often, catching a mismatch early makes the next steps much easier.

What If There Is A Mistake On Your P60?

If something on your P60 looks wrong, the first step is usually to speak to your employer or payroll team. HMRC’s employer guidance says that if a P60 needs changing, the employer should issue a replacement or provide a letter confirming the correct details.

That can feel a bit daunting if you are already unsure what has happened, but it is usually more straightforward once the right person is involved. The important thing is not to ignore it. Even a small mistake can become more frustrating later if you need the figures for a tax return, a benefits claim or a check on your tax position.

I’ve Lost My P60. What Should I Do?

First, ask your employer if they can provide another copy or the same information again. If you cannot get it from them, GOV.UK says you can contact HMRC or get the information you need through your Personal Tax Account or the HMRC app.

So if you have lost your P60, you are usually not stuck. It is inconvenient, but in most cases the key information can still be recovered. That is often a relief for people who only realise they need it once a deadline or application is already in front of them.

Is A P60 The Same As A P45?

No. They are related, but they do different jobs.

A P60 is the year-end summary for a job you still had on 5th April. A P45 is given when you stop working for an employer, and it shows your pay and tax up to the date you left. GOV.UK treats them as separate forms used at different points in your employment.

That is why the two are often mentioned together. If you are looking back over a whole tax year, a P60 is usually the more useful document. If you are moving jobs, your P45 helps your new employer set things up more accurately. If you do not have a recent P45, HMRC uses a Starter Checklist instead.

Difference between a P45 & P60

Can A P60 Help With A Tax Refund?

Yes, it can help, but carefully.

A P60 can be very useful when you are checking whether you may have paid too much tax, because it shows your year-end pay and tax figures for that job. GOV.UK explicitly says you may need it to claim back overpaid tax.

What it does not do is prove on its own that you are definitely due money back. That depends on the wider picture, including things like your tax code, job changes, other income, and whether any reliefs or work expenses apply.

Your P60 when you've got more than one job

If you’ve got more than one employer, you should be getting a P60 from each after the end of the tax year. Tax rebates and other money issues can get a little more complicated when you’ve got multiple jobs, so make sure you know where to find all your P60 paperwork when you need it.

Do I get a P60 if I'm self-employed?

If you’re self-employed with no “on the books” income, you won’t be using the PAYE system to pay your tax and National Insurance Contributions. This means you won’t get a P60 form each year. Instead, you’ll use the Self-Assessment tax return system to handle all your tax paperwork. If you’re self-employed but also have a PAYE job, though, then your tax situation can be a little more complicated. Talk to RIFT if you’re not sure exactly where you stand.

My new employer has asked me to fill in a “Starter Checklist”. What does this mean?

If you’re starting your first job, or taking on a new job without quitting your old one, you might be asked to fill in a Starter Checklist. This is a replacement for the old P46 form you used to get. Here’s what you need to know:

The checklist is designed to help your employer work out your tax code. That’s one of the reasons why it’s so important. If your tax code’s wrong, it’s your responsibility to get it fixed – even if the mistake wasn’t yours!
The checklist will also contains some other important details that can impact the tax you’ll be paying. This includes things like whether you’re getting certain benefits, have another job or are currently paying off a Student Loan.

P60s and Umbrella Companies

If you work through an umbrella company, you’re basically supplying your services through them instead of working for the “end employer”. That means your P60s will come from the umbrella company itself, rather than the firm you’re actually doing the work for. Essentially, the umbrella company is acting as your actual employer here.

I'm an employer. What do I need to know about P60s?

Putting people to work through the PAYE system involves filling out yearly P60 forms for each of them. Whether you do that on paper or digitally, the forms need to be in your employees’ hands or hard drives by the 31st of May.

If you’re running a Limited Company and paying yourself a salary, don’t forget that you’re officially employing yourself through the PAYE system. That means you need a P60 for yourself each year.

Final Thought

A P60 is a simple document, but it does a useful job. It gives you a clear year-end record of pay and tax for a PAYE job, and it can help you make sense of your records when something feels off or when you suddenly need proof of income or tax paid.

If yours is missing, do not panic. If something on it looks wrong, do not leave it sitting in a drawer and hope it goes away. In most cases there is a sensible next step, and once you know what the document is for, it becomes much easier to deal with.

Common P60 FAQs

Do I get one P60 for all my jobs?

No. You get a separate P60 for each job you still had on 5th April.

Do I get a P60 if I left my job before 5th April

Usually no. If you left before the end of the tax year, you would normally get a P45 instead.

What if my employer has not sent my P60 by 31st May

Start by asking them for it. Employers must give a P60 to employees who were working for them on 5th April, and they must do so by 31st May.

Can I check some of this information online?

Yes. GOV.UK says you can use your online tax account or the HMRC app to check your tax code and other Income Tax details, and if you have lost your P60 you may be able to get the information you need there.

Can I claim a tax rebate without my P60s?

A P60 is a really useful tool for claiming a tax rebate from HMRC, but you can still make a claim without one if necessary. When you’ve got RIFT working on your refund, there are other ways we can track down the information needed for your claim. We can use things like payslips and income statements, for instance – and can even get key information directly from HMRC.

How do I use my P60 to get a tax refund?

Since a P60 is the record of all the tax you've had deducted over a year, it’ll probably be your first tip-off that you’re owed a rebate in the first place. On top of that, it’s got a lot of the most important information needed to show HMRC that you've paid too much tax. To kick things off, compare your P60 to your payslips. If something doesn't add up, you’ve got your first clue right in your hands.

Do sole traders get P60s?

Because a P60 is a record of your PAYE earnings and tax over a year, Sole Traders won’t usually get (or even need) them. Being self-employed, Sole Traders use Self Assessment tax returns instead of PAYE. Of course, it’s completely possible to be a Sole Trader but still also receive PAYE income from another job. In that case, you’ll still get a yearly P60 as normal from your PAYE employer.

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What is a P60?​