A P60 is the end-of-year certificate that UK employers must issue to every employee who is still in employment on 5 April, the final day of the tax year. It summarises the employee's total gross earnings, income tax deducted, and National Insurance Contributions paid during the tax year just ended. Employers must provide P60s by 31 May following the end of the tax year, either in paper or electronic format where the employee has agreed to receive it digitally.
The P60 is a critical document for employees completing a Self Assessment tax return, applying for a mortgage, claiming tax repayments, or verifying their NIC record for State Pension purposes. HMRC accepts the P60 as evidence of earnings and tax paid; individuals should therefore retain copies for at least six years. Employees who lose their P60 cannot obtain a replacement from HMRC directly but can request a duplicate from their employer or access the information through their Personal Tax Account.
If an employee has multiple jobs, they will receive a separate P60 from each employer. The cumulative figures on each P60 reflect only the pay and deductions processed through that employer's PAYE scheme, so individuals with more than one source of PAYE income may need to reconcile across documents to confirm their overall tax position for the year.