Second Jobs & Multiple Incomes
BR Tax Code: Why you are being taxed 20% on everything
If your payslip shows the BR tax code, it stands for Basic Rate. It means your employer is deducting a flat 20% in Income Tax from every single penny you earn, with absolutely no tax-free allowance. If this is your second job, this is completely normal. If this is your only job, you are being robbed by the tax system.
In the UK, every individual gets one Personal Allowance (currently £12,570 for the 2026/27 tax year). This means you can earn £12,570 a year before you pay a single penny of Income Tax.
However, HMRC's computer system is not smart enough to share this allowance automatically across multiple employers. Therefore, they allocate 100% of your allowance to your "Main Job" (which gets the 1257L code), and they allocate 0% to any other jobs you hold.
Those second jobs are given the BR (Basic Rate) code, meaning they are taxed at a flat 20% from the first pound.
Is it illegal to have two jobs?
Absolutely not! The "Second Job Tax" is a massive myth. You do not get penalized for having two jobs. If you earn £30,000 from one job, or £15,000 each from two jobs, your total tax bill at the end of the year will be exactly the same.
The BR code simply prevents you from accidentally receiving two tax-free allowances (£25,140 total), which would result in a massive, unaffordable tax bill at the end of the year when HMRC finally catches the mistake.
Higher Rate Earners Watch Out
If your combined income from both jobs pushes you over the £50,270 higher-rate threshold, the BR code is dangerous. It only taxes your second job at 20%, meaning you are underpaying your 40% tax. You will face a huge bill at the end of the year. You must ask HMRC to change your second job to a D0 code (flat 40%).
How to split your Personal Allowance
While the BR code is standard, it isn't always the best mathematical setup for you.
Let's say your main job is part-time and only pays £10,000 a year. HMRC has applied your entire £12,570 allowance to that job. You aren't paying any tax there, but £2,570 of your allowance is being completely wasted! Meanwhile, your second job is stuck on a BR code, paying 20% tax on everything.
You can call HMRC and ask them to split your tax code.
You can tell them: "Please allocate £10,000 of my allowance to Job A, and the remaining £2,570 to Job B." HMRC will issue two new custom tax codes (like 1000L and 257L) to your employers. Your overall tax remains correct, but your weekly take-home pay from the second job will instantly increase.
What if BR is on my ONLY job?
If you only have one job, but your payslip says BR, you are on an emergency tax code. This usually happens because you didn't hand in a P45, or you filled out the Starter Checklist incorrectly by ticking "Statement C" (which tells HMRC you have another job when you don't).
To fix this, you must call HMRC immediately (0300 200 3300). Tell them this is your only employment. They will issue a standard 1257L code to your employer, and the payroll software will automatically refund the 20% tax you overpaid on your next payslip.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is my second job taking 40% tax?
If your payslip shows a D0 code instead of a BR code, it means HMRC has calculated that your main job already uses up your entire basic-rate band. Therefore, every penny from your second job must be taxed at the higher 40% rate.
Does the BR code affect National Insurance?
No! National Insurance is calculated per-job, not cumulatively. Even if your second job is on a BR code for Income Tax, you still get a full National Insurance allowance (£242 a week) for that second job. This is the one genuine financial benefit of having two jobs instead of one.