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If the Income Tax on your payslip looks wrong, first separate a tax-code problem from a payroll calculation or pay-figure error. Compare the code on your payslip with HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC)’s current record, check that HMRC has the right employment and income details, then test the deduction with HMRC’s estimate tool. If the figures still do not agree, ask your employer’s payroll team to investigate. The correction route and timing depend on which of those problems you have.
What “wrong income tax” can mean
PAYE tax is withheld using information supplied by HMRC and figures entered by your employer or pension provider. A payslip can therefore be wrong in more than one way. Identifying the type of error prevents you from sending the issue to the wrong place.
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| What you find | Likely issue | First action |
|---|---|---|
| The tax code on the payslip differs from HMRC’s code | The employer may not have received or applied the latest code | Ask payroll to check the code it holds and whether it received HMRC’s notice |
| The codes match, but your job, pension, benefits, estimated income or expenses are wrong or missing in HMRC’s records | HMRC is calculating PAYE from incorrect personal information | Update the details in HMRC’s online service or app |
| The code and circumstances appear right, but the deduction does not match an independent calculation | A payroll setup, PAYE-table, software or pay-figure error may be involved | Give payroll the payslip details and ask it to check the calculation |
| You receive a P800 showing an underpayment allegedly caused by an employer or pension payer | A separate employer-error question with limited statutory conditions | Use HMRC’s employer-error enquiry route; do not assume the underpayment is automatically cancelled |
Step 1: read and keep the payslip
Save the payslip, preferably with the date and pay period visible. HMRC says you need the tax code, gross pay and amount of tax paid to check the calculation. Also record the other deductions and the final net pay, because a change in National Insurance, pension, student-loan or other deductions can make the take-home amount look different even when Income Tax is correct.
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- Tax code: copy it exactly, including any letters or suffixes.
- Gross pay: use the figure for that pay period and note whether the payslip also shows a year-to-date total.
- Income Tax deducted: distinguish this line from National Insurance and other deductions.
- Net pay: keep it as a check on the complete deduction calculation, not as a substitute for checking Income Tax.
- Pay frequency and period: note whether you are paid weekly or monthly and which month or week the slip covers.
Keep earlier payslips as well. A one-off bonus, overtime payment, back pay or correction can change the taxable pay in a particular period; comparing consecutive slips helps payroll identify when the difference began.
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Step 2: compare the payslip code with HMRC’s record
Use HMRC’s official Check your Income Tax service or the HMRC app and compare the code shown there with the code printed on your payslip. This comparison should come before you conclude that either side has made a mistake.
If the codes are different
HMRC’s instruction is straightforward: speak to your employer. Ask the payroll team to confirm the code currently stored in its payroll system, the date it was last changed and whether it received HMRC’s latest notice. Give payroll a copy of the payslip and, if available, the code shown in your HMRC account. Do not alter the code yourself; the employer must apply the official notice it receives.
A difference can be temporary when HMRC has issued a new code but payroll has not yet processed it. Ask when the next payroll run will include the change. If payroll says it has not received a notice, HMRC may need to reissue or confirm the code.
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If the payslip and HMRC show the same code, the next question is whether that code is based on correct information. HMRC says incorrect or missing personal information is a common reason for a wrong code.
Review the records that feed PAYE
In the online service or app, check each item that applies to you:
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- Your current employer and any employment you have left or started.
- Pension income or a pension provider that should be included.
- Your estimated taxable income for the year.
- Taxable company benefits.
- Employment expenses that HMRC has accepted or that you are claiming.
Correct missing or wrong entries through the service. Explain changes in your circumstances rather than trying to compensate by asking payroll to use a different code. HMRC, not the employee, determines the code that should be used.
If you recently changed jobs
If you left an old job and do not have a P45, ask the former employer for one. The P45 gives the new employer and HMRC information about pay and tax already recorded for the tax year. Until the records are joined up, a code can be based on incomplete information.
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After you submit an update, keep a note of what you changed and when. That record is useful if the code does not change or if payroll later asks why HMRC sent a new notice.
Step 4: test the arithmetic with HMRC’s estimate tool
When the code appears appropriate and your circumstances are up to date, use HMRC’s estimate your tax for the current year tool. Enter the gross pay and tax code from the payslip, using the correct pay frequency and period requested by the tool. Compare its estimate with the Income Tax line on the payslip.
The tool is a checking aid, not a replacement for your individual payroll record. A meaningful comparison requires the same gross-pay basis and pay frequency. If the payslip includes an unusual payment, check whether the tool asks for annual or period figures and do not mix the two.
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If the estimate and payslip differ
Send payroll the payslip, the code you used, the gross-pay figure and the result of the estimate. Ask it to check the PAYE table, payroll software settings and the pay figure entered for that period. HMRC’s employer-error guidance specifically includes use of an incorrect or unauthorised code, an outdated code, the wrong PAYE table, software setup mistakes and mistyped pay figures.
Ask for a written explanation of the correction and the pay period in which it will be made. A payroll error can affect the tax deduction without any problem in HMRC’s personal record, so changing your HMRC details will not fix an arithmetic or data-entry mistake made by the employer.
How long a corrected tax code takes to appear
When HMRC changes a code, it says it will tell you and your employer within 15 working days. Once the employer receives the new code, it should generally appear on the next or following monthly payslip, or on the third weekly payslip.
If that period passes without a change, ask payroll whether it received HMRC’s notice and whether the notice was loaded before the payroll cut-off. Give HMRC the employer’s response if you need to contact HMRC again. A payroll calendar can explain a short delay, but an unexplained failure to apply the notice should be followed up.
When an Income Tax overpayment is refunded
If HMRC has all the income information needed for the tax year, it calculates the difference and asks the employer or pension provider to refund an overpayment through pay, usually when the new code is used. This is normally an adjustment to your wages, not necessarily a separate bank transfer from HMRC.
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Monthly-paid workers should usually see the new code and any related refund on the next or following pay. Weekly-paid workers should usually see it on the third pay after the employer receives the code. These are HMRC’s general timings; a payroll cut-off or missing information can delay the adjustment.
If HMRC does not yet have income details from an employer, pension provider or benefits office, it may be unable to calculate the refund immediately. The missing organisation may need to supply those details first. At the end of the tax year, HMRC checks its records and contacts people when the total tax paid was wrong.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What to do when the employer made the mistake
Ask payroll to check its records if the code and HMRC circumstances are correct but the deduction is still wrong. Include:
- The affected pay period and payslip.
- The tax code shown on the payslip and in HMRC’s service.
- Gross pay, Income Tax and other deductions.
- Any unusual payment or change in hours, salary or benefits.
- The result of HMRC’s estimate tool.
HMRC’s employer-error examples include an incorrect or unauthorised tax code, an outdated code, an incorrect PAYE table, a payroll-software setup error and a mistyped pay figure. Ask the employer to correct the payroll record and explain how any under- or over-deduction will be handled.
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Repair common Windows errors and clear accumulated junk for a smoother, more stable PC - no reinstall needed.Free scan · no reinstallIf you cannot approach or contact the employer, HMRC says you can contact it directly. HMRC will ask the employer for an explanation, so keep copies of payslips, messages and the dates you tried to resolve the issue.
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A P800 underpayment and the limited employer-error protection
A P800 underpayment is not automatically cancelled because an employer’s payroll was wrong. HMRC’s employer-error guidance describes limited circumstances in which a person may not have to pay an underpayment caused by an employer or pension payer. The guidance concerns a failure to take reasonable care and an error that was not made in good faith; both the facts and the conditions matter.
Making an employer-error enquiry
HMRC asks for the affected tax year and underpayment, employer or pension-payer details, the suspected mistake, and why you believe reasonable care was not taken and the mistake was not made in good faith. Explain the sequence clearly and attach relevant payslips, P45 or P60 records, P800 notices and correspondence.
HMRC investigates these cases and says the process may take time. If HMRC issues a direction that you must pay, the guidance explains a right of appeal. Continue to treat the P800 as an official liability unless HMRC confirms otherwise; do not stop payment solely because you have reported an employer error.
How to contact HMRC
HMRC’s Income Tax enquiries page lists digital help, the Personal Tax Account and the HMRC app, as well as a phone route for PAYE, tax-code and overpayment questions. At the time the guidance was accessed, the UK telephone number was 0300 200 3300, Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm. Phone numbers and opening hours can change, so confirm the current details on GOV.UK before calling.
Have your National Insurance number, payslip and employer details ready. If you cannot hear or speak on the phone, Relay UK is available by dialling 18001 followed by 0300 200 3300. Digital contact is often useful because you can see the employment and income entries that HMRC is using.
Quick Recap
Common mistakes to avoid
- Changing the wrong record: do not ask HMRC to amend personal details when the employer has simply mistyped your pay.
- Assuming a matching code proves the tax is right: the code can match while the estimated income, benefits or pension information is wrong.
- Comparing the wrong figures: match the payslip’s pay period and gross-pay basis to the estimate tool.
- Expecting an instant bank refund: a correction is usually made through payroll after the new code is applied.
- Ignoring missing income information: HMRC may have to wait for an employer, pension provider or benefits office before calculating an overpayment.
- Treating employer-error relief as automatic: the P800 rules apply only in limited circumstances and require HMRC to investigate.
A practical checklist
- Keep the payslip and write down the tax code, gross pay, Income Tax, other deductions, net pay and pay frequency.
- Compare the payslip code with HMRC’s online service or app.
- If the codes differ, ask payroll to check the code it received and applied.
- If they match, review employment, pension, estimated income, benefits and expenses in HMRC’s records.
- Request a P45 from a former employer if you recently left and do not have one.
- Run the current-year estimate using the payslip’s gross pay and code.
- If the result differs, give the calculation and payslip to payroll for a records and software check.
- Track the 15-working-day HMRC notification period and the next or following monthly, or third weekly, payslip.
- If an overpayment remains unresolved, contact HMRC through the current digital or telephone route.
- For a P800 underpayment that may involve employer failure to take reasonable care, submit the employer-error information and preserve your appeal rights.
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