Got your first UK payslip? Here's what every line means

Getting your first UK payslip is an exciting moment — until you look at the deductions and wonder where your money went. The UK uses a system called PAYE (Pay As You Earn), which means your employer deducts your estimated tax before you get paid.

The most important things to check on month one

1. Your Tax Code

This is the most critical part of your first payslip. If it's your first ever job, or you didn't hand over a P45 from a previous employer, you might be put on an "emergency tax code" (like BR, 0T, or a code ending in W1/M1).

The standard tax code for most people is 1257L. This means you can earn £12,570 this year before paying any income tax. If you have an emergency code, you might be overpaying tax right now. Read our guide to fixing a wrong tax code if yours isn't 1257L.

2. National Insurance (NI)

You'll see a deduction for National Insurance. This pays for the NHS, state benefits, and your future state pension. You pay 8% on earnings above £1,048 per month. Unlike income tax, NI is calculated purely on this month's earnings — if you worked overtime, you might pay a lot of NI this month.

3. Your NI Number

Check that your National Insurance Number is printed correctly. If it's a temporary number (sometimes starting with TN), you need to provide your real NI number to your employer as soon as you receive it, otherwise your tax records won't link up properly.

4. Pension Deductions

By law, if you're over 22 and earn more than £10,000 a year, your employer must automatically enroll you in a workplace pension. You usually contribute 5% of your qualifying earnings, and your employer adds at least 3%. It's basically free money from your employer, plus tax relief from the government.

Use the checker

The easiest way to know if your first payslip is correct is to use our payslip calculator. Enter your gross pay and compare the deductions it calculates with the ones on your paper payslip. If they match, you're on the right tax code!