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500 T tax code

August 2026

Reviewed by RIFT's Quality and Service Manager, Edward Waine ATT

Quick answer:

A 500T tax code usually gives you around £5,000 of tax-free pay and shows HMRC needs to review your details

A 500T tax code usually means HMRC has allocated you around £5,000 of tax-free income from a particular job or pension. The letter T means there are items in your tax calculation that HMRC needs to review.

A 500T code is not automatically an emergency tax code and it is not necessarily incorrect. However, it is worth checking why HMRC has given it to you, particularly if your take-home pay has changed unexpectedly.

What does the 500T tax code mean?

The numbers and letters in your tax code tell your employer or pension provider how to calculate the Income Tax deducted from your pay.

In a 500T tax code:

500 normally means you can receive approximately £5,000 of tax-free income from that particular job or pension during the tax year.
T means your tax code includes other calculations or circumstances that HMRC needs to review.

The standard Personal Allowance for the 2026/27 tax year is £12,570. Therefore, a 500T code suggests HMRC has allocated you less than the standard Personal Allowance at this source of income.

This does not automatically mean the code is wrong. Some or all of your Personal Allowance may have been used elsewhere or reduced because of other income, benefits or tax adjustments.

Is 500T an emergency tax code?

500T on its own is not an emergency tax code.

You are normally on an emergency or non-cumulative tax code only when your code ends in:

For example, 500T M1 would be an emergency code because it includes the M1 marker. However, 500T without one of these markers can operate cumulatively.

A cumulative code considers your income and tax paid earlier in the tax year. An emergency or non-cumulative code calculates tax using only the pay you receive in the current week or month.

Why might I have a 500T tax code?

There is no single reason why someone receives a 500T tax code. HMRC calculates each tax code using the information it holds about that person’s income and circumstances.

You may have a 500T tax code because:

Part of your Personal Allowance has been allocated to another job or pension
You receive taxable income that is not taxed before it is paid, such as the State Pension
You receive taxable company benefits, such as a company car or private medical insurance
HMRC is collecting tax you owe from an earlier tax year
HMRC has included an estimate of untaxed income
Your Personal Allowance has been reduced because your income is above £100,000
HMRC needs to review part of your tax calculation
HMRC has incomplete or outdated information about your income

Your HMRC tax-code calculation or coding notice should show the allowances and deductions used to arrive at the code.

Does 500T mean I will pay 40% tax?

No. A 500T code does not mean all your income will automatically be taxed at 40%.

The amount of Income Tax you pay depends on:

Your total taxable income
The tax-free allowance included in your code
The Income Tax bands that apply to you
Whether you live in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland or Wales
Whether the code is cumulative or includes W1, M1, X or NONCUM

Your employer applies the appropriate tax rates after taking account of the tax-free amount provided by your code.

What's the difference between 500 T and 0T?

500T tax code

A 500T code normally gives you approximately £5,000 of tax-free pay from that employment or pension. The T shows that HMRC needs to review part of the calculation.

0T tax code

A 0T tax code gives you no Personal Allowance at that employment or pension.

You may receive a 0T code if:

Your Personal Allowance has already been used against another source of income
Your allowance has been reduced to zero
You have started a new job and your employer does not have enough information to use another code

A 0T code is not automatically non-cumulative. It would need to include W1, M1, X or NONCUM for it to operate on an emergency basis.

Is my 500T tax code wrong?

A 500T tax code may be correct if the allowances and deductions HMRC has included accurately reflect your circumstances.

You should check the code if:

You do not recognise one of the deductions in your calculation
HMRC has included a job, pension or benefit you no longer receive
Your estimated income is too high or too low
Your employer has used a different code from the one shown in your HMRC account
Your take-home pay has unexpectedly fallen
You have recently started or left a job
You think your Personal Allowance has been divided incorrectly between different incomes

Being on a 500T code does not, by itself, prove that you have overpaid tax.

How to check you 500T tax code

You can check your current tax code through HMRC’s online Income Tax service or the HMRC app.

Review the information HMRC holds about your:

Current and previous jobs
Workplace or private pensions
Estimated annual income
Taxable company benefits
State Pension and other taxable income
Employment expenses and tax reliefs
Tax owed from previous years

You can also compare the tax code shown in your HMRC account with the code on your latest payslip.

If you have received a tax-code notice from HMRC, look at the calculation to see how HMRC arrived at the £5,000 tax-free amount.

How to correct a 500T tax code

If the information HMRC holds is wrong or incomplete, update it through the Check your Income Tax online service.

You may need to:

Add a missing job or pension
Tell HMRC that a job or benefit has ended
Correct your estimated annual income
Update details of company benefits
Provide information from your P45
Claim any employment expenses you are entitled to

If you recently started a new job, give your employer your P45. If you do not have a P45, complete a starter checklist so your employer has the information needed to operate PAYE.

HMRC advises people who have recently started a job to allow up to 35 days for their income details and tax code to be updated.

If you cannot use HMRC’s online service, you can contact HMRC directly. Checking and correcting your tax code through HMRC is free.

What happens after HMRC changes your tax code?

If HMRC agrees that your tax code needs to change, it will send the updated code to you and your employer or pension provider.

HMRC says it will normally send the new code within 15 working days. Once your employer receives it, the updated code should usually appear:

On your next or following payslip if you are paid monthly
By your third payslip if you are paid weekly

Speak to your employer if HMRC has issued a new code but it has not appeared on your payslip within the expected timeframe.

Your employer cannot normally decide what your permanent tax code should be. It must apply the code and instructions supplied by HMRC.

Can I get a refund if my 500T code was wrong?

You may be due a refund if an incorrect 500T code caused you to pay more Income Tax than you owed.

When HMRC updates your code, it will check whether it has enough information to calculate the correct amount of tax.

If you have overpaid during the current tax year, your employer or pension provider may refund the difference through your pay after applying the new code.

If HMRC cannot reconcile the position during the tax year, it will normally review the tax you paid after the tax year ends and explain how any refund can be claimed or paid.

You may also owe additional tax if the previous code caused you to pay too little.

500T tax code FAQs

Is 500T a temporary tax code?

Not necessarily. The letter T means HMRC needs to review certain items in your tax calculation. The code may change when HMRC receives updated information, but a T code is not automatically a temporary code.

Is 500T a non-cumulative tax code?

Not on its own. It is non-cumulative only if it also includes W1, M1, X or NONCUM. For example, 500T M1 is non-cumulative, while 500T without an emergency marker may be cumulative.

Does 500T mean HMRC has no information about me?

No. HMRC may hold information about you but need to review a particular allowance, deduction, income source or adjustment included in your code.

Does 500T give me a £5,000 Personal Allowance?

The number 500 normally gives you approximately £5,000 of tax-free income at that particular employment or pension. It does not necessarily represent your total Personal Allowance across all your income.

Can my employer correct my 500T tax code?

Your employer can correct information submitted through payroll and apply a new tax code sent by HMRC. However, HMRC normally decides and issues your tax code.

How long does it take HMRC to change a tax code?

HMRC says it normally sends an updated code within 15 working days after your details have been corrected. If you have recently started a job, it can take up to 35 days for HMRC to receive and process the relevant employment information.

Will I automatically receive a tax refund?

Not always. A current-year overpayment may be refunded through your wages or pension when a new cumulative code is applied. In other cases, HMRC will contact you after reviewing your tax position and explain how the refund will be paid or claimed.