What Is a P45? Every Part Explained and What to Do With It
Quick answer
Your P45 carries your tax position from one job to the next. What each of the four parts does, what to do if you lose it and the emergency tax it prevents.
Quick answer: A P45 is the leaving certificate your employer must give you when a job ends. It carries three numbers your next employer needs: your tax code, your pay so far this tax year, and the tax already taken. Hand it over before your first new payday and your tax carries on seamlessly. Fail to, and payroll must guess, which typically costs around £200 a month in emergency tax until HMRC catches up. It is free, it cannot be replaced if lost, and there is a specific fallback (the starter checklist) that rescues most situations.
All figures on this page are 2026/27 rates, checked against HMRC published thresholds on 27 July 2026.
Who this guide is for
| You are... | What matters for you |
|---|---|
| Leaving a job for a new one | Get the P45, keep Part 1A, give Parts 2+3 to the new employer fast |
| Starting work with no P45 | The starter checklist decides your code; answering it right avoids 0T |
| Between jobs and claiming benefits | Jobcentre Plus takes the P45 so taxable benefits are coded and refunds are not stuck |
| Retiring or starting a pension | The P45 goes to your pension provider; otherwise the first withdrawals get emergency-taxed |
| Going self-employed | Keep Part 1A for Self Assessment; nothing to hand over unless you take employed work again |
| An employer or new manager | You must issue P45s without unreasonable delay and cannot charge for them |
Key facts
| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Official name | "Details of employee leaving work" |
| Who must provide it | Every employer, automatically, at or shortly after final pay |
| The four parts | Part 1 to HMRC; Part 1A yours to keep; Parts 2 and 3 to the next employer |
| Replacement if lost | Not allowed; the starter checklist is the official fallback |
| Shelf life | Fully useful in the tax year it was issued (payroll can also use it early in the next year) |
| Cost of not using one | Typically ~£209.50/month overpaid on a £28,000 salary (0T code) |
How the P45 process works
- Your old employer runs your final pay, then generates the P45 (paper or, commonly now, a PDF in your payroll portal).
- Part 1 goes electronically to HMRC; you receive Parts 1A, 2 and 3.
- You keep Part 1A somewhere safe and photograph it.
- You give Parts 2 and 3 to your new employer before their payroll cut-off (or to Jobcentre Plus, or your pension provider).
- The new payroll continues your cumulative tax position: same code, running totals intact, no emergency tax.
If this is you, do this (decision table)
| Situation | Meaning | Decision | Action |
|---|---|---|---|
| New job starts, P45 in hand | Smooth handover available | Beat the cut-off | Give Parts 2+3 to payroll in week one |
| Old employer has not sent the P45 | They are late, not exempt | Chase in writing | Email payroll; escalate to HMRC on 0300 200 3300 if ignored |
| P45 lost | No duplicates exist | Use the fallback | Complete the starter checklist accurately on day one |
| New job, no P45 yet, first payday close | 0T risk | Do the checklist NOW, swap P45 later | Checklist beats waiting; the P45 can still follow |
| Emergency-taxed in month one | Overpayment sitting with HMRC | No claim needed (usually) | Refund arrives via payslip once the cumulative code kicks in; chase HMRC if 2+ months |
| P45 from LAST tax year | Data too old for cumulative use | Starter checklist | Statement B normally gives 1257L W1/M1, corrected quickly |
| Starting a pension/drawdown | Providers emergency-tax first payments | Send the P45 to the provider | Or reclaim quickly using HMRC forms P55/P50Z/P53Z |
Real example 1: Jake, 28, warehouse to retail, textbook handover
Jake leaves a £24,000 warehouse job on 12 June; his P45 shows 1257L, pay to date £4,730, tax £419. He starts at £25,500 on 1 July and hands Parts 2+3 over on day two, before the 15th cut-off. July's payslip: code 1257L cumulative, tax £244, exactly right, and no correction ever needed.
Real example 2: Chloe, 31, lost P45, saved by the checklist
Chloe cannot find her P45 when she starts a £28,000 marketing job. Her options, in money terms:
| Route | Code applied | Tax in month 1 | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|
| Does nothing, misses checklist | 0T | £466.67 | £209.50 overpaid, waits weeks for refund |
| Completes starter checklist, Statement B ("only job now, had another this year") | 1257L M1 | £257.17 | Right amount for the month; goes cumulative and self-corrects |
She ticked Statement B, paid the normal amount, and the code went cumulative in month two. Check any emergency month of your own with the emergency tax calculator, and confirm the code with the tax code checker.
Real example 3: Malcolm, 66, first pension withdrawal
Malcolm retires and takes a first £10,000 taxable withdrawal from his pension pot. Because his provider has no P45, the payment is emergency-taxed on a "Month 1" basis at roughly £3,055 instead of the ~£900 his real annual income justifies. Sending the P45 from his old job (or filing form P55 straight after) got £2,155 back within 30 days. Anyone entering drawdown should read the tax-free lump sum guide before the first withdrawal.
The starter checklist: answer it like it matters
Three statements decide your code when there is no P45. Read them slowly; the wrong tick is expensive.
| Statement | When it is true | Code you get |
|---|---|---|
| A: First job since 6 April, no other income since | School/uni leavers, returners | 1257L cumulative (full allowance, backdated) |
| B: Only job now, but had another this tax year | Normal job changers without P45 | 1257L W1/M1 (right for now, corrects soon) |
| C: I have another job or pension | Genuine second income | BR (flat 20%, correct for seconds) |
Ticking C when B is true is the most common self-inflicted BR code; see the tax code BR guide for the escape route.
What to write when chasing a missing P45
Email payroll, subject "P45 request - [your name], leaver [date]": "I left on [date] and have not received my P45. Please email it or confirm when it was issued. I need it for my new employer's payroll cut-off on [date]." Fourteen days of silence is the point to phone HMRC; they contact employers who sit on P45s, and meanwhile the starter checklist protects your first payslip.
How long things take
| Event | Typical timeline |
|---|---|
| P45 issued after final pay | 0 to 14 days (often instant in payroll portals) |
| Emergency code goes cumulative | Usually by month 2 of the new job |
| Emergency-tax refund via payslip | The first pay run on the cumulative code |
| Pension emergency tax reclaim (P55 etc.) | Within 30 days of the claim |
| Year-end automatic reconciliation (P800) | Letters June to November after the tax year |
Action checklist
- Leaving: confirm where the P45 will arrive (post or portal) before your last day.
- Photograph Part 1A immediately; store it with your P60s.
- Ask the new employer for the payroll cut-off; deliver Parts 2+3 before it.
- No P45? Starter checklist on day one, statement chosen carefully.
- Check payslip one: right code, believable tax. Estimate with the take-home pay calculator.
- Overpaid anyway? Track what is owed with the tax refund calculator and make sure it comes back.
Frequently asked questions
How long does an employer have to give me a P45?
The law says without unreasonable delay after final pay. In practice: same week from modern payroll systems. Two weeks of silence justifies chasing; persistent refusal is an HMRC matter, and they do act on it.
Can an employer refuse a P45 because I owe them money or left badly?
No. The P45 is a legal obligation regardless of disputes, notice arguments or final-pay disagreements. Withholding it is not a lever they are allowed to pull.
Do I need my P45 to claim a tax refund?
No; HMRC's systems already hold what employers reported. Part 1A is your evidence if the records look wrong, which is exactly when you will be glad you photographed it.
What if I have two P45s in one year?
Use the one from the job you left most recently. The earlier one is already baked into HMRC's running totals; keep both Part 1As for your records.
Does a P45 show my new employer my old salary?
It shows taxable pay and tax so far this tax year, so yes, they can infer it. That is unavoidable; the alternative (checklist, emergency tax) costs you real money to hide a number they will not care about.
I started self-employment. Is there a P45 equivalent when I stop?
No form exists; you tell HMRC you have ceased trading and settle through Self Assessment. Your first-year numbers are easier if you start from the self-assessment tax calculator.
Sources
- GOV.UK: P45, P60 and P11D forms (accessed 27 July 2026)
- GOV.UK: Starter checklist for PAYE (accessed 27 July 2026)
- GOV.UK: Claim a tax refund (accessed 27 July 2026)
Written by
Laura Michelle Davis — Chartered Tax Adviser (CTA)
ACCA · CTA (Chartered Tax Adviser) · ATT · BSc Economics, UC Berkeley
Laura Michelle Davis is a Chartered Tax Adviser (CTA) who also holds the ACCA and ATT qualifications and a BSc in Economics from UC Berkeley. She specialises in UK personal tax, covering income tax, National Insurance, self-employment and capital gains, and has built her career making complicated rules easy to follow. At TaxFly, Laura writes and edits the tax guides and explainers, checking that figures reflect current HMRC rates and that every explanation answers the question a real person is actually asking. Her goal is plain-English clarity you can trust and act on.
