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Claiming Tax Back Without a P45 or P60

Claiming Tax Back Without a P45 or P60

Each year thousands of people fail to claim tax rebates because they are not given a P45/P60 from their employer or they lose their tax documents. Many people just give up on the prospect of claiming a refund and as a result millions of pounds go unclaimed in tax refunds each year. Here our tax experts answer some common questions on how to claim a tax refund without a P45 /P60:

What is a P45?
A P45 is given to you by your employer when you finish working for them. This document gives you a breakdown of the tax and income you have earned during the tax year. If you have another job lined up, you should give your P45 to your new employer. They can put you on the correct tax code and avoid you being put on an emergency tax code and potentially paying too much tax.

What is a P60?
At the end of each tax year (April 5th) you should be given a P60 from your employer. Your P60 shows how much you have earned in the tax year and how much you have paid in tax.

I left on bad terms with my employer and was not give me a P45. What should I do?
Your employer is required to provide a P45 when you leave their employment. Often if you leave a job unexpectedly your employer will forward your P45 to your last known mailing address.

I have tried asking for a replacement P45 but my employer will not give me one?
Your employer might not be able to give you a replacement P45, however they are required by law to provide a ’statement of earnings’ for the last 6 years. A statement of earnings is sufficient replacement for a P45 or P60 and can be used to claim your tax refund from the Inland Revenue.

How do I get a statement of earnings?
Write a letter to the payroll department (we can provide a template, just Email Us). Ask for a statement of earnings for each of the last 6 tax years that you were working for the company in question. We recommend using recorded delivery, so that you have proof that they received the letter.

What if they refuse?
If they refuse, they are breaking the law. They can charge a small fee, and they can ask for proof of your identity but refusing is contravening the data protection act. If the payroll department refuses to give you the statement of earnings, ask to speak to their line manager or data protection act officer.

How do I know if I am due a tax refund?
There should be a tax figure and an income figure on your statement of earnings. This shows how much tax and how much income you have earned for the year. Input these numbers into our tax rebate calculator and it will tell you instantly if you are due a tax refund.

What if I am missing a P60?
A statement of earnings if a replacement for both a P45 and P60.

What if I do not want to or am unable to get my statement of earnings?
We can help you claim a tax refund from the Inland Revenue even if you do not have all of your P45 or P60s. We can obtain a maximum of two statement of earnings from previous employers.


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h - Friday, June 11th, 2010

I haven’t worked for 5 years and have moved home within that time and am therefore unable to find my latest p60 how do i get another?
I am on emergency tax and paid nearly £30 on nearly £135.

TaxFix - Friday, June 11th, 2010

h: If you have lost your P60 you can write to your previous employer and ask for a ’statement of earnings’ on company headed paper. We can send you a template if you need to, just Email: template@taxfix.co.uk

Gabi - Friday, July 2nd, 2010

My previous employer doesn not give me my P60.Can I claim tax return?

TaxFix - Friday, July 2nd, 2010

Gabi: You can write to your employer and request a statement of earnings on company headed paper, this can be used instead of a P60.

Dave - Tuesday, July 6th, 2010

I have a P60 from the 2007-2008 year, and can get one from this last year (2009-2010), however I don’t have ones from any other years.
Are these required for me to claim tax back from the past 5 years employment?
Thanks

Anonymous - Wednesday, July 7th, 2010

My P60 was issued and the following month, money was deducted from the period covered in the P60, making the details on the P60 wrong. (they deducted it as an apparent overpayment). I have requested that they make the correction but have heard nothing and despite leaving 2 months ago, my P45 has not been registered with the Inland Revenue. How can I get this information please?

TaxFix - Wednesday, July 7th, 2010

Dave: If you were working on the last day of the tax year (5th April) you should have been given a P60 from your employer. If you were not working on that day you would not have been given a P60, you may have been given a P45 instead when you finished working. If you were working you need a P60/P45 to claim a tax refund. If you do not have a P60/P45 you can always write to your employer and request a ’statement of earnings’ on company headed paper, which can be used as a replacement for a P60/P45. If you would like a template letter to send to your employer, we can send you one, just email: template@taxfix.co.uk

Anonymous - Sunday, July 18th, 2010

Could I have a template of P60?

TaxFix - Monday, July 19th, 2010

Anonymous: Sure, just Email template@taxfix.co.uk

Jane - Saturday, July 31st, 2010

I have my end of financial year pay slip detailing the gross pay, taxable pay, tax paid, NI paid and pension contributions. Is it the gross pay and tax paid that would be on the P60? Is it OK to enter those details on a tax return?

Anonymous - Wednesday, August 4th, 2010

my employer went into receivership and did not issue us with either p45 or p60’s how can i obtain one

Monika - Wednesday, August 4th, 2010

If I get that template letter from you and, statement of earnings , from my previous employer, what is the next step?

Zuza - Wednesday, August 4th, 2010

I dont have my P60 and P45 too, but I do have all of my payslips. Will it be helpful?

TaxFix - Wednesday, August 4th, 2010

Anonymous: It may be hard to receive one as they are no longer in business. Your local tax office may have records of your pay and income, but there is no guarantee.

TaxFix - Wednesday, August 4th, 2010

Monika: Once you have your statement of earnings you can claim your tax back here.

TaxFix - Wednesday, August 4th, 2010

Zuza: If you do not have your P45/P60 you need to ask your employer for a ’statement of earnings’. This can be used as a replacement for a P45/P60. We can send you a template letter to send to your employer if you like, just Email us: template@taxfix.co.uk

Anonymous - Thursday, August 12th, 2010

how do i do a tax return for 08/09 without any paper work?

starkiez - Thursday, August 19th, 2010

That’s a damn good question.

Anonymous - Sunday, August 22nd, 2010

Hi, I have never claimed for a tax rebate before. I do not even no if i am owed any tax. I have had about 8 jobs in the last 6 years and do not have ant p45s or p90s to be able to claim any tax back. Some of the companies i have worked for have closed down now. Is there any way i can get all my p45s and p90s from one place?rather than trying each employer?Could HM R&C be able to get them?

TaxFix - Monday, August 23rd, 2010

Anonymous: Your employers issue the P45/P60 so if some have closed down it may be hard to obtain replacements.

mark - Thursday, August 26th, 2010

Hi my daughter needs proof for her grant app I havent worked in 10 years and claim low rate dla.
They want proof I have not earned tax year 2008/9 what do I do

TaxFix - Thursday, August 26th, 2010

mark: I would ask them what proof they need.

Jaime - Thursday, August 26th, 2010

Heya, I’m Jaime from Spain, I’ve been working for 4 months in Bournemouth but now I’m back in Spain. My problem is that according to my manager, they got some problems at paying me before i left UK, and they also didn’t give me the P45 document, even tho i insisted a lot about it. They told me to trust on them, that they would pay me and they would send me the P45 document through mail. But it’s been 3 weeks already since i left UK and they didn’t pay me nor send the P45 document. After several callings, they were trying to avoid me the whole time “oh sorry, it’s too busy atm” and bullshit like that. I’m really pissed since everytime they needed me when other waiters got sick, i agreed to work on my days off. Now i’m planning to go to Bournemouth, go to any police station and explain everything. Would it help? Since it’s against the law to don’t give me the P45 document, i guess it should.

Any hint? Thanks in advance.

TaxFix - Friday, August 27th, 2010

Jaime: If your employer did not give you a P45, you can write to them and request a statement of earnings which can be used as a replacement for a P45.

joe - Monday, August 30th, 2010

will my local tax office return my p45

joe - Monday, August 30th, 2010

will my local revenue office return my p45 as they required it to process a claim