What is a P60?

A P60 is an end-of-year certificate that UK employers must provide to every employee who is on the payroll on 5 April (the last day of the tax year). It shows the employee’s total pay, the income tax deducted and National Insurance contributions paid during the tax year.

What a P60 Contains

The P60 summarises the employee’s entire tax year earnings and deductions from that employer. It includes:

When Must a P60 Be Issued

Employers must provide the P60 to each qualifying employee by 31 May following the end of the tax year. For the 2024/25 tax year (ending 5 April 2025), the deadline is 31 May 2025.

Key Rules

• The P60 must be given to every employee on the payroll at 5 April
• Employees who left during the tax year receive a P45 instead, not a P60
• P60s can be issued electronically or on paper
• The employer must not charge the employee for the P60
• P60s are generated by the employer’s payroll software from RTI data

Who Gets a P60

If an employee has multiple jobs, each employer issues a separate P60. The employee’s total income across all employments is reconciled by HMRC using data from RTI submissions .

Why the P60 Matters

For Employees

The P60 is an important document that employees may need for:

• Self Assessment tax returns — declaring employment income and tax paid
• Mortgage applications — lenders use P60s as proof of income
• Loan applications — as evidence of earnings
• Tax refund claims — if the employee believes too much tax was deducted
• Benefit claims — proving income for Universal Credit or Tax Credits
• Pension calculations — verifying pensionable earnings
• Student loan balance checks — confirming repayments made

For Employers

The P60 confirms that the employer has correctly reported and deducted tax and NICs throughout the year. It should reconcile with:

• The final RTI submission for the tax year
• The employer’s payroll records
• The employee’s payslips — the cumulative totals on the final payslip should match the P60

P60 and the Tax Code

The P60 shows the final tax code used for the employee in the tax year. This code determines the tax-free allowance and is important for:

• Checking that the correct code was applied
• Identifying if emergency tax was used (codes ending in W1, M1 or X)
• Confirming any Marriage Allowance transfer (M or N codes)
• Verifying any tax code adjustments made during the year for benefits in kind or underpayments

If the tax code on the P60 looks wrong, the employee should contact HMRC to request a review.

P60 and National Insurance

The P60 breaks down NIC earnings into the threshold bands used for National Insurance calculations:

The NIC figures on the P60 are used to verify the employee’s National Insurance record with HMRC, which affects their State Pension entitlement.

P60 and Student Loans

If the employee has a student loan, the P60 shows the total amount deducted during the tax year. The loan plan type determines the repayment threshold:

Electronic P60s

Most employers now issue P60s electronically, typically through:

• The employer’s HR or payroll portal
• Email with a PDF attachment
• The payroll software’s employee self-service feature

Electronic P60s are legally valid provided the employee can access and print them. The employer should ensure the system is secure and that employees are notified when their P60 is available.

Lost P60s

If an employee loses their P60:

• The employer can provide a replacement or a statement of earnings and deductions
• HMRC cannot issue a replacement P60 — only the employer can
• HMRC can provide information from their records about tax paid and earnings, but this is not a P60
• Employees can check their tax records through their Personal Tax Account on GOV.UK

Employers should retain payroll records and be able to reprint P60s for at least 6 years.

P60 vs Other Payroll Documents

Checking a P60

Employees should verify their P60 figures against:

• Final payslip of the tax year — cumulative figures should match
• Previous payslips — the sum of all periods should equal the P60 totals
• Tax code — ensure it matches the code on the latest payslip
• Student loan deductions — total should match payslip cumulative totals
• Pension contributions — if shown, should match contributions through auto-enrolment

If there are discrepancies, the employee should raise them with the employer’s payroll department first. If the employer cannot resolve the issue, the employee can ask HMRC to investigate.

P60 and Accounting

From the employer’s perspective, the P60 data should reconcile with the accounting records :

• Total gross pay on all P60s should match the salary expense for the year
• Total tax deducted should match PAYE liability payments to HMRC
• Total NIC should match the employee NIC amounts reported through RTI
• Any statutory payments (SSP, SMP) should match the corresponding expense accounts

This reconciliation is an important year-end check for payroll accuracy and compliance.