At a Glance
| P60 | P45 | |
|---|---|---|
| When issued | After 5 April each year | On the day employment ends |
| Who receives it | All employees still employed on 5 April | The employee who is leaving |
| Period covered | The full tax year just ended (6 Apr–5 Apr) | From 6 April to the leaving date |
| Issued by | Current employer | Leaving employer |
| Deadline | 31 May following the tax year end | As soon as possible; with final payslip |
| Used for | Tax returns, mortgage applications, benefit claims | Starting a new job, tax returns, benefits |
The P60 in Detail
What is a P60?
A P60 (End of Year Certificate) summarises an employee's total earnings and deductions for the completed tax year. It is produced for every employee who was on the payroll on 5 April — the last day of the tax year.
Employees use their P60 to:
- Complete a Self Assessment tax return
- Prove income to a mortgage lender or letting agent
- Claim tax rebates or Universal Credit
- Check their NI record
What does a P60 show?
- Total pay in the tax year (from this employer only)
- Total Income Tax deducted
- Total employee National Insurance contributions
- NI category letter
- Employer name and PAYE reference
- Employee NI number
- Student loan deductions (where applicable)
Note: the P60 only covers earnings from the employer issuing it. If an employee had a previous job in the same tax year, those figures appear on a P45 from the previous employer — not on the current P60.
Deadline and format
Employers must provide P60s by 31 May following the end of the tax year. For the 2024/25 tax year (ended 5 April 2025), the deadline was 31 May 2025.
P60s can be issued digitally — employees do not need a paper copy. Many payroll systems, including PayPacket, generate P60 PDFs that can be downloaded or emailed directly to employees.
Who doesn't get a P60?
An employee who left before 5 April does not receive a P60 from that employer — they will have received a P45 instead. Employees who joined after 5 April won't receive a P60 until the following year end.
The P45 in Detail
What is a P45?
A P45 (Details of Employee Leaving Work) is issued when an employee leaves a job. It records their earnings and tax deductions from the start of the tax year up to their leaving date.
The P45 serves two purposes:
- It gives the employee a record of their earnings and tax to date in the current tax year.
- It tells their new employer (or Jobcentre Plus, if they're claiming benefits) their tax code and year-to-date figures, so deductions can continue correctly.
Parts of the P45
Under RTI, the P45 is no longer a multi-part paper form. The employer generates the P45 digitally (or on paper) and gives a copy to the employee. The employee provides Part 2 and Part 3 to their new employer. The "Part 1" notification to HMRC is now handled automatically through the FPS leaver indicator.
What the new employer does with a P45
When a new employee starts with a P45, their new employer uses the tax code and year-to-date pay and tax figures to continue PAYE deductions correctly. The year-to-date figures are entered into the payroll software so the cumulative basis of taxation works correctly for the rest of the year.
When there is no P45
If a new employee starts without a P45 — because it's their first job, they've lost it, or they had a gap in employment — the employer must ask them to complete a Starter Checklist.
The Starter Checklist (Formerly the P46)
Before RTI, employers used a P46 form when a new employee didn't have a P45. The P46 has been replaced by the Starter Checklist (sometimes informally called a P46, though that name is no longer correct).
The Starter Checklist asks the employee to select their situation:
- Statement A: This is their first job since last 6 April, and they haven't been receiving taxable benefits, a pension, or a student loan.
- Statement B: This is their only job, but since last 6 April they've had another job, or received taxable benefits, a pension, or a student loan.
- Statement C: They have another job or receive a pension.
The statement determines the emergency tax code to use until HMRC issues a formal P6 tax code notice:
- Statement A → 1257L cumulative (normal tax code, taxed on a cumulative basis)
- Statement B → 1257L Week 1/Month 1 (emergency basis, avoiding potential underpayment)
- Statement C → BR (Basic Rate — all earnings taxed at 20%, assuming the personal allowance is used elsewhere)
How Long Should Employees Keep These Documents?
HMRC recommends keeping P60s and P45s for at least 22 months from the end of the relevant tax year — this covers the self assessment deadline and any enquiry period. For employees completing self assessment, it's prudent to keep them for 5 years after the 31 January filing deadline.
Digital P60s and P45s
Both documents can be issued digitally. There is no legal requirement for a paper P60 or P45 in the RTI era. Many bureaus issue payslips and P60s via a secure employee portal or PDF email. Employees can download and save their documents digitally — they're accepted by HMRC, mortgage lenders, and benefit agencies in digital form.