Payroll year-end in the UK runs from the final pay period in March or early April through to the last P11D(b) submission in July. Done well, it is a slightly busier month rather than a fire-fight. Done badly, it generates penalties, employee complaints and a long shadow into the new tax year. This guide sits within our payroll and HR hub and walks through every milestone in order, so nothing slips.
The year-end timetable
UK payroll years end on 5 April, and most year-end events fall within the following eight weeks. Diarise these dates the moment your last March pay run is confirmed.
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| Last pay period before 5 April | Submit final FPS marked “Final submission for the year” |
| Up to 19 April | Submit any corrections via an earlier-year update or a new FPS |
| By 31 May | Issue a P60 to every employee on the payroll on 5 April |
| By 6 July | File P11D and P11D(b) for benefits not payrolled |
| By 22 July | Pay Class 1A NIC electronically (by 19 July if paying by post) |
| Before first pay run of new year | Apply new tax codes, allowances and NIC thresholds |
The P60 can be paper or electronic — both are acceptable as long as the employee can save and print it. For the detail of what the certificate is and how staff use it, see our explainer on what a P60 is.
What goes on the P60
A P60 is the year-end summary for each employee in your employment on 5 April. Leavers during the year do not receive one — they get a P45 on leaving instead, and their figures feed the brought-in totals on a new employer’s payroll.
| Box | Contents |
|---|---|
| Pay in this employment | Taxable pay this year |
| Tax deducted | PAYE income tax |
| Pay from previous employments | From P45 brought-in figures |
| Tax from previous employments | From P45 brought-in figures |
| Final tax code | At 5 April |
| Student loan deductions | Plan 1, 2, 4 or 5 |
| Postgraduate loan deductions | If applicable |
| Statutory pay | SMP, SPP, ShPP, SAP, SPBP, SSP |
Reconcile the student loan and postgraduate loan lines carefully — the figures on the P60 must match what you reported through RTI across the year. Our guide to student loan deductions from payroll sets out how the plan thresholds drive each pay period’s deduction.
Final FPS and EPS
Two distinct year-end submissions complete the cycle.
- Final FPS — flag the last full payment submission for the tax year as “Final”
- Final EPS — submit if you have nil payments, statutory recovery, Apprenticeship Levy or CIS deductions to declare for March
- Match the EPS Apprenticeship Levy to the employer National Insurance schedule
- Issue an earlier-year update (the old EYU is replaced by an FPS) for prior-year corrections
- Run a final HMRC liability reconciliation and clear any underpayments
- Double-check Construction Industry Scheme returns are filed (see CIS construction industry scheme)
If either submission is late, HMRC can charge a penalty per PAYE scheme, so confirm the Final flag is set before the last March run goes out rather than relying on a catch-up FPS afterwards.
Setting up the new tax year
Before the first pay run of the new year, update the system with the following. Several of these reset annually and are easy to forget.
| New-year action | Detail |
|---|---|
| Carry forward tax codes | Add 1 to the suffix where instructed |
| Apply the P9X uplift | HMRC publishes this annually |
| Update NIC thresholds | Primary, secondary and the upper earnings limit |
| Reset Employment Allowance | Must be re-claimed each year |
| Refresh student loan thresholds | For Plans 1/2/4/5 and PGL |
Apply the P9X general uplift before loading any individual P9 coding notices, otherwise the carry-forward and the notice can fight each other. Keep the rates generic in your own checklists and pull the current rate from HMRC each April rather than hard-coding last year’s figures.
Closing thoughts
P60s and the final submission come from your payroll software. Our partners can take payroll year end off your hands through accounting help.