Check if the tax on your payslip is correct
Source: gov.uk (2025-01-16)

How to check your tax if your pay is not what you expected, and update your details if you think your tax code is wrong.

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Your employer takes Income Tax and National Insurance from your pay and pension before you get paid. This is called Pay As You Earn (PAYE).

We use a tax code to tell your employer or pension provider how much of your annual income should be tax-free. This tax code is based on your Personal Allowance (the amount you can earn without paying tax).

Your tax-free amount:
- increases if you qualify for certain allowances or tax reliefs
- reduces to collect tax due for company benefits and income from other sources or if your total income is more than £100,000 in a tax year
Your employer or pension provider tells us about any income or benefit changes related to you that could affect your tax. A tax code change helps you pay the right amount of tax throughout the year. It makes it less likely you will pay too much or too little tax at the end of the year.

If your tax code changes it can change the amount of take-home pay you receive.

Find out why your tax code has changed

You can view your personal tax records online to check:
- your tax code
- the reason your tax code has changed
You’ll need to sign in or set up an HMRC online account (https://www.gov.uk/log-in-register-hmrc-online-services) or use the HMRC app (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/download-the-hmrc-app).

Using the HMRC online account
- Sign in to HMRC online services.
- Go to the ‘Pay As You Earn (PAYE)’ section.
- If your tax code has changed, you will have an important message banner on your PAYE Income Tax overview.
- Select ‘view your latest tax code change’, this will explain the reason for the change.
- If your tax code has not changed you can select ‘check current tax year’ and view your PAYE Income Tax Summary for 6 April to 5 April.
- Then select your tax code (for example ‘Tax code: S1257L’) to check your personal allowance.
Using the HMRC app
- Download the HMRC app.
- Go to the ‘Pay As You Earn (PAYE)’ section.
- Select ‘understand your tax code’. If your tax code changes, this section will explain the reason for the change.
If you decide not to use our online services, you can check what your tax code means (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/check-what-your-tax-code-means).

Update your details if you think they are wrong or missing

If you think your tax code is incorrect, you can update your details to tell HMRC about:
- starting a new job (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/tell-hmrc-if-you-have-a-new-job-or-more-than-one-job)
- having more than one job (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/tell-hmrc-if-you-have-a-new-job-or-more-than-one-job)
- a change in your employment income (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/tell-hmrc-about-a-change-to-youremployment-income)
- a change in your company benefit (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/tell-hmrc-about-a-change-to-your-company-benefits) like a company car or medical insurance
- a change in your pension income (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/tell-hmrc-about-a-change-to-yourpension-income)
Go paperless for tax code updates

You can choose to receive updates about any changes to your tax code by email or as an online message in your HMRC online account or HMRC app. Find out how to go paperless for tax code updates (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/go-paperless-for-tax-code-updates).

If you need extra help using HMRC online services

You can find out how to:
- get help from HMRC if you need extra support (https://www.gov.uk/get-help-hmrc-extra-support) if you cannot use our online services
- register a friend or relative to help with your tax (https://www.gov.uk/help-friends-family-tax)