Tax Refunds

Got your P60? Here's how to check if HMRC owes you money

Every May, millions of workers receive their P60. Don't just file it away — it's your ticket to checking if you're owed a tax refund for the 2025/26 tax year.

By the 31st of May every year, your employer is legally required to give you a P60. It is a simple document that summarizes exactly how much you earned and how much tax you paid in the previous tax year (which ended on April 5th).

Most people glance at it and throw it in a drawer. But doing that could cost you hundreds of pounds. Because the P60 contains the exact figures needed to check if you overpaid tax.

Why would HMRC owe me money?

The PAYE (Pay As You Earn) system is generally very good, but it makes assumptions. It assumes you will earn exactly the same amount every month for the whole year. If life happens, the system breaks.

You are highly likely to be owed a refund if you experienced any of the following during the last tax year:

  • You changed jobs: And had a short period of unemployment between them.
  • You had an emergency tax code: Did you see "W1", "M1" or "X" at the end of your tax code for a few months?
  • You started a job part-way through the year: Meaning your £12,570 personal allowance wasn't fully used.
  • You went on maternity leave or long-term sick leave: Your income dropped significantly, meaning you were taxed too much earlier in the year.

Find out instantly if you are owed a refund

Grab your P60 and look for two numbers: Total pay for year and Total tax deducted. Put those numbers into our Tax Rebate Calculator to see if you overpaid.

Calculate Tax Refund →

How to check your P60 Tax Code

The other crucial piece of information on your P60 is your Final Tax Code. This was the code your employer used on your very last payslip of the year.

For most people in 2025/26, the standard tax code was 1257L. If your P60 shows a different code, and you don't know why (e.g. you don't have a company car, medical insurance, or owe past taxes), you might have been on the wrong code for the entire year.

Read our full guide to reading your P60 to understand exactly what every box on the form means.

What to do if you overpaid

If our calculator shows you overpaid, don't panic. You don't need to pay a claims company 40% of your refund to get it back.

HMRC usually spots these overpayments automatically and sends out P800 letters between June and October. The letter will tell you how much you are owed and how to claim it online (usually arriving in your bank account within 3 days).

However, if you haven't received a letter by October, you can log into your Personal Tax Account on GOV.UK and request the refund manually. You can claim back overpaid tax for up to four previous tax years!