Claiming tax back after leaving a job

If you stop work part way through the tax year and do not start another job or claim a taxable benefit, you have usually paid too much tax and can claim it back before the year ends on form P50 or HMRC’s online equivalent. Pension withdrawals have their own forms: P50Z, P53Z, P55 and P53. If you are about to start a new job, are claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance or Employment and Support Allowance, or receive a works pension, the refund normally comes another way and you may do better to wait for HMRC’s end of year P800.

Why do people who leave work overpay tax?

Most employees are on a cumulative tax code, which gives a proportion of the year’s tax free allowance each week or month. HMRC’s PAYE Manual (PAYE94025) explains that if someone stops work part way through the year, they will probably not have had all the Personal Allowance due to them, and if they do not claim Jobseeker’s Allowance, taxable Incapacity Benefit or Employment and Support Allowance, a refund is likely.

Illustration only. Ali lives in England, earns £3,000 a month on code 1257L and leaves on 30 September 2026 with no plans to work again this tax year. By month 6 payroll has given him half of the £12,570 Personal Allowance, so tax of 20% has been charged on £11,715, which is £2,343. His income for the whole of 2026 to 2027 is £18,000, so the tax actually due is 20% of £5,430, which is £1,086. He has overpaid about £1,257, and a P50 claim lets him have it back now rather than after 5 April 2027.

Who can claim in year on form P50?

HMRC’s P50 guidance says you may be able to claim now if, for example, you:

• have been unemployed for 4 weeks or more and are not claiming taxable state benefits;
• have retired and do not get a pension from your old employer;
• do not expect to go back to work;
• have returned to full time study.

You cannot claim while you are still registered with an employment agency; the agency must first send HMRC your final pay and tax details. You must also have received your final pay before you apply. HMRC’s own staff guidance at PAYE94025 lists the other situations where an in year cessation repayment is possible, including final cessation of employment, starting self employment, and work stopping because you have gone abroad (in which case form P85 is used).

When should you not use P50?

HMRC says you do not need to claim on P50 if you:

• expect to start a new job within 4 weeks, because your new employer will make any repayment through your salary once you hand over your P45;
• claim one of the taxable state benefits;
• receive an occupational pension, because the pension provider can make the repayment, or HMRC will repay any overpaid tax after 5 April;
• received a pension flexibility payment or a small pension lump sum, which have their own forms (below);
• left work and received your last pay before 5 April of the previous tax year, which is a claim for an earlier year rather than an in year claim.

Which form applies to a pension withdrawal?

When you take money flexibly from a pension, the scheme often has no up to date code and uses the emergency code on a month 1 basis for the first payment (PAYE94055). That can lead to too much tax being taken. HMRC’s guidance sets out three scenarios and a separate form for small lump sums:

Form	Use it when
P50Z	You have taken all of your pension pot and have no other PAYE or pension income, or only the State Pension
P53Z	You have taken all of your pension pot and still have one or more employments or other pensions
P55	You have taken some of your pension pot but not all of it
P53	You received a small pension lump sum (formerly called trivial commutation or a small pot)

There are also death benefit versions, P50Z(DB), P53Z(DB) and P55(DB). Where a pot is emptied, the scheme issues a P45, and where the money is taken in several payments the P45 is issued only after the last one (PAYE94055). For a P55 claim HMRC also issues a new code to the pension provider so that later withdrawals are taxed correctly.

What information do you need and how long does it take?

The quickest route is HMRC’s online claim, which needs you to sign in. If you cannot sign in, you can complete the form online, print it, sign the declaration and post it; you cannot save your progress, so gather everything first. For a P50 you need:

• your National Insurance number;
• your employer’s PAYE reference, if you have it;
• parts 2 and 3 of your P45, or the reason you do not have them;
• any self employment profits made in the tax year;
• details of any pensions, State Pension, taxable benefits or other income received since 6 April.

HMRC says it may take 14 days to reply and asks you not to chase during that period. Repayments on a P50 are made by payable order to you or a nominee, and the P50 guidance says they cannot be made by Bacs. For the pension forms, HMRC repays by Faster Payments into a bank account in your name or your nominee’s, and checks the position again after the end of the tax year.

When is it better to wait for a P800?

An in year claim is not always possible or worthwhile.

• Claiming JSA or ESA. PAYE94060 says that, apart from limited exceptions, tax repayments are not allowed for any reason during a claim. Any repayment is made through the benefit office at the end of the claim or after 5 April, whichever is earlier.
• Another PAYE source continues. If you leave one job but keep a second job or a pension, HMRC will not process a P50. It may instead move your unused allowances to the continuing source, and if that does not give the right result the refund comes through the end of year reconciliation (PAYE94025).
• Close to 5 April. Claims made shortly before or after the year end are still handled using estimated figures, but the end of year reconciliation will review every PAYE record anyway. If you do nothing, HMRC checks the position after the year ends and sends a P800 tax calculation showing any refund.
• Starting self employment. An in year repayment is still possible, but once a Self Assessment record has been set up HMRC calculates the refund manually and credits it to your Self Assessment account (PAYE94025).

What happens if you start work again after a refund?

An in year refund uses up some or all of your Personal Allowance for the year. PAYE94025 explains that if you take another job later in the same year, the end of year reconciliation will pick up any underpayment caused by the allowances being given twice. That underpayment is then normally collected through your tax code in a later year. Telling your new employer about the refund, and giving them your P45, keeps the code as close to right as possible.

Is there a time limit?

An in year claim must be made in the tax year concerned. After that, the general rule in section 43 of the Taxes Management Act 1970 is that a claim for relief from Income Tax must be made within 4 years after the end of the tax year it relates to. In practice most leavers who miss the in year window are dealt with automatically by the P800 process, so a late claim is mainly needed where HMRC’s records are wrong or incomplete.

What mistakes do people make?

• Claiming before the final payslip, so the P45 figures are incomplete.
• Using P50 for a pension withdrawal instead of P50Z, P53Z or P55, which delays the refund.
• Claiming while still on an agency’s books or while receiving JSA or ESA.
• Leaving out other income such as a pension, rental profit or self employment profit on the form.
• Forgetting that higher earners may have to complete a Self Assessment return instead; HMRC tells claimants to check their income before using P50.

If a refund ends up being paid after a Self Assessment return, the rules on Self Assessment deadlines apply instead.

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Related Accountapedia entries

• Pension withdrawals and emergency tax
• Tax for students with part time and summer jobs
• Form R40: claiming back tax on savings
• How tax on pension income is collected
• Uncrystallised funds pension lump sums (UFPLS)
• Relief for work related liabilities after leaving a job

See also: P50: claiming tax back when you have stopped work.

Sources

• GOV.UK: Manual page PAYE94025
• GOV.UK: Income tax rates
• GOV.UK: Income tax claiming tax back when you have stopped working p50
• GOV.UK: Manual page PAYE94055
• GOV.UK: Claim a tax refund on your pension by post
• GOV.UK: Manual page PAYE94060
• legislation.gov.uk: Act 1970 c. 9, section 43

Reviewed by Christine Anderson, Broker, Solar Protect. Last reviewed 8 October 2026. Part of Accountapedia, the Solar Protect guide to UK tax and accounting. This page is general information, not personalised advice.