P45, P60 and tax documents: what to get

P45 — when your employment with an employer ends. P60 — an annual summary if you are employed by them on 5 April. Payslip — a statement for an individual payment. These are different documents: your final payslip is useful for checking figures, but it does not become a P45.

SA302 — a tax calculation after Self Assessment; Tax Year Overview — information from HMRC for a chosen tax year. You may need them as proof of income, for example for a lender. Ask for a list of requirements first, rather than collecting every document just in case.

P85 is an application to HMRC when you leave, not an employer’s certificate. Certificate of Residence and Letter of Confirmation concern tax residence, not the right to live or work in the UK. They are not automatically needed simply because seasonal work is ending.

Your employer issues a P45 when your employment ends. Ask payroll when and how you will receive it: do not assume it will necessarily be ready on the day of your last shift. Check the leaving date, tax code, personal details, income and tax deducted from 6 April until you leave. Compare the amounts with your payslips and query any differences.

For a paper P45, keep Part 1A; Parts 2 and 3 are given to your new employer when you take up permitted employment. A P45 helps ensure previous income is taken into account correctly, but does not guarantee a particular tax code. Not having one may lead to incorrect tax; BR and 0T are different codes, not a universal “20% for everyone”.

If your P45 has not yet been issued, request it from your previous employer. If you have lost a document that was already issued, or your employer sent it but you did not receive it, GOV.UK states that a replacement is not issued. Income and tax information for the last 5 tax years is available in your Personal Tax Account or the HMRC app, but this is not a duplicate P45. Complete the starter checklist before your first pay from the new employer; if you have already received your first pay, use HMRC’s Check your Income Tax service instead to check your tax code and details.

If the income or tax is wrong, ask your previous employer to correct the information and issue an amended P45. If you cannot get it corrected, tell HMRC through the Income Tax checking service. For errors in personal details, follow the separate GOV.UK instructions instead of editing the document yourself.

If you work through an agency, establish whether your employment with the legal employer has ended or just one shift/placement. A change of workplace does not in itself mean a P45 and starter checklist are needed every time. Keep confirmation of the contract end date and a payroll contact.

Please confirm when and how I will receive my P45. Please also check the leaving date, pay and tax figures.

• GOV.UK: P45 — issue, loss and errors
• GOV.UK: starter checklist
• Check Income Tax with HMRC

The UK tax year runs from 6 April to 5 April the following year. If you were employed by an employer on 5 April, they must issue a P60 by 31 May — on paper or electronically. There will be a separate P60 for each such job. If you left earlier, do not wait for a P60 from your former employer instead of a P45.

A P60 shows income and tax for the relevant year and can be used to check an overpayment or prove income. Check your name, NI number and the year, and compare the amounts with your records. Check whether the entries relate to this employer or include previous employment.

If you have lost your P60, ask your employer for a replacement. If you cannot get one, find the information contained in the P60 in your Personal Tax Account/the HMRC app, or request it from HMRC. Information from your account should not be described as the P60 itself.

If your employer has already closed, keep any payslips you have and request information from HMRC. Ask the recipient whether they will accept this information or payslips instead of a P60. There is no universal rule requiring every organisation to accept a substitute. An incomplete season does not automatically make the income an annual figure either: you may need to explain the period you worked when applying.

• GOV.UK: P60 — who gets one and when

When you finish work and leave, check HMRC’s guidance on leaving. A PAYE worker who does not submit Self Assessment for the year of departure usually uses P85. Give your actual dates, details of any accommodation you retain, your income and plans to visit the UK. Leaving does not in itself mean you have overpaid tax or that your tax residence automatically ends.

If you have not yet left, the current guidance requires you to print the application and send it by post. After leaving, you can use the online service. Gather the information for the postal form in advance: your progress filling it in is not saved. Include your P45 if you have it; if not, explain why as instructed. Keep a copy of what you send and the reference number, if one is issued.

If you submit Self Assessment for that year, you usually report your departure in the return using the residence section — SA109; HMRC’s standard online service does not support this section. You use a paper return or suitable commercial software. There is a separate exception for full-time work abroad for a UK employer for at least a full tax year, where GOV.UK also provides for P85. So the rule that “P85 and SA are always incompatible” is incorrect.

Do not submit two applications for the same possible overpayment without checking. First confirm the right route for you with HMRC, especially if you have other income or have already submitted a return. Uncertain entitlement to Personal Allowance cannot automatically be treated as confirmed.

For the P85 route, the guidance describes a cheque/payable order sent to you or a nominee — your chosen recipient. Do not expect an automatic transfer to any overseas account. Confirm the delivery address and whether you can pay in the cheque, and keep access to your bank; HMRC does not pay for currency conversion or transfers abroad. Check current response times using the official service, rather than relying on an intermediary’s promise.

• HMRC: P85 application when leaving
• GOV.UK: tax when leaving the UK
• Estimating a refund and applying yourself for free
• Personal Allowance for people living abroad

SA302 relates to Self Assessment: it is a tax calculation based on your return, not a separate receipt for payment. HMRC allows you to obtain calculations for the last 4 years after submitting a return. Tax Year Overview is a separate summary for the tax year. A lender may request both documents; confirm the specific years and format.

If you submitted through HMRC, sign in to your account, open Self Assessment and the section More details about your Self Assessment returns and payments. Select the relevant year and calculation. Under the current guidance, you can only print documents after 72 hours have passed since submitting the return. This does not promise that the document will appear at precisely that point regardless of any errors.

If you submitted your return using commercial software, obtain the tax calculation from that software; it may be called a tax computation. You can still print your Tax Year Overview from your HMRC account. If you cannot find the calculation, establish how the return was submitted and contact support for the relevant service.

Save the full printed version/PDF showing the year and details, not just a cropped image of the amount. Find out whether the lender accepts documents you have printed yourself. A mortgage checklist is not the same as a visa checklist: requirements depend on the specific process. Having an SA302 or P60 does not in itself guarantee that an application will be approved.

• HMRC: get SA302 and Tax Year Overview
• GOV.UK: understanding the SA302 calculation
• Self Assessment guide

A Certificate of Residence helps confirm UK tax residence for the purposes of a double taxation agreement. HMRC checks eligibility for the document; the foreign tax authority decides on the relief. Specify the country, period and type of income, not just the fact that you worked on a farm.

A Letter of Confirmation may be used where there is no suitable agreement or confirmation is needed for another purpose. This is also a tax document. It does not confirm the right to stay, does not replace an eVisa and does not mean automatic exemption from tax in another country.

If a foreign authority has requested a certificate, ask for its exact name and the period it should cover. Then check the appropriate option and apply through HMRC’s official service. A short period of work in the UK and having an NI number do not in themselves establish tax residence. In a complex situation, clarify the basis first rather than ordering a certificate at random.

• HMRC: Certificate of Residence and Letter of Confirmation

An error is easier to correct before you send the documents. This checklist helps you check the set of documents, but does not replace the recipient’s requirements or promise approval.

• The right year: check that all documents relate to the period requested.
• A complete set: if SA302 and Tax Year Overview are needed, save both for the same year.
• The return has been processed: do not present a draft calculation as a final HMRC document.
• Personal details: if the name or NI number differs, request a correction and find out what explanation is needed.
• Complete format: save all pages; check whether the recipient accepts a PDF, a printout or another format.
• An incomplete year: state the actual period you worked; do not present seasonal income as earnings for a full year.

Before access to your employer’s portal is closed, download your payslips and documents. Save them with the legal employer’s name and a payroll contact so that you know who to write to later. Separately note any document you are still waiting for.

Share documents only with the intended recipient through an agreed channel. Someone who is simply helping you understand a document does not need your HMRC password, bank password or one-time login code. Paid help is not required to download available documents; clarify the terms of representation and the cost in advance.

• The full end-of-season guide
• Tax refunds
• How to check paid tax help