How to Get My P60: A Complete Guide to Recovering a Lost End-of-Year Tax Certificate

What Is a P60 and Why Does It Matter?

A P60 is an end-of-year certificate that shows the total pay, Income Tax, and National Insurance contributions (NICs) deducted from your salary during a single tax year (6 April to 5 April). You receive a separate P60 for each employer you work for on the last day of the tax year. The document is a vital record for employees and employers alike, serving as the official summary of your annual earnings and tax position. If you are trying to get P60 but are unsure what it actually contains, the table below breaks it down.

Each section of the P60 serves a specific purpose for both HMRC verification and third-party validation. The employee details section confirms your identity with your National Insurance number, while the earnings summary provides a complete picture of your taxable income. The tax and NIC figures are cross-referenced against HMRC records to ensure accuracy, and the tax code indicates which emergency or standard code was applied throughout the year. Any student loan deductions are separately itemised so you can track your repayment progress. Understanding these components helps you verify the accuracy of the document once you get your P60 from your employer.

Key Information Shown on a P60

Why Your P60 Is Important

• Proof of income — Lenders, landlords, and agencies use it to verify your annual earnings for mortgages, loans, and rental agreements.
• Tax refund claims — If you believe you have overpaid tax, the P60 provides the figures needed to support a reclaim from HMRC.
• Benefits and credits — Universal Credit, Child Benefit, and other means-tested applications often require P60 evidence.
• Pension and retirement planning — Pension providers may request your P60 to confirm earnings-related contributions.
• Self-assessment cross-check — Self-employed individuals with additional employment income use it to verify PAYE figures.
• Visa applications — UK Visas and Immigration requires P60 documentation as supporting evidence for work visa applications.

Understanding these uses makes it clear why so many people urgently search for how to get my P60 when the document goes missing — the financial stakes can be significant, and without it, you may face costly delays. Knowing how to get P60 in advance means you are prepared should the situation ever arise. Additionally, keeping digital backups of your P60 once you receive it can prevent future hassle if the original is misplaced.

This is how the paper copy of a UK P60 looks:

How to Get My P60: Step-by-Step Recovery Process

If your P60 is lost, damaged, or never arrived, there is a clear sequence of steps you can follow to have your P60 back into your hands. The process depends largely on whether your employer can still access your payroll records, so start there before exploring alternatives.

Step 1: Check Your Own Records First

Before contacting anyone, take a few minutes to search thoroughly. Many people find they already have what they need to get P60 resolved without going further:

• Check physical filing cabinets, payslip folders, and any tax document storage.
• Search your email inbox for electronic P60s — many employers now issue them digitally.
• Log in to your employer's payroll or HR self-service portal (e.g., Workday, ADP, Sage Employee Online, BrightPay Connect, or Xero Me) if available.
• Ask household members if the document may have been moved during cleaning or decluttering.
• Review your personal tax records or any previous tax returns where you may have noted the P60 figures.

Step 2: Contact Your Employer Directly

The most direct route when you need to retrieve P60 is simply to ask your employer. Larger companies often host digital archives in HR platforms like Workday, ADP, Sage, or BrightPay, where you can self-download historical forms. For smaller businesses without an online portal, you can contact the internal payroll team or the business's external payroll accountant directly. Employers are legally required to retain PAYE records for at least three years after the end of the tax year to which they relate, though many keep them up to 6 years for general business tax compliance. They can issue a replacement P60, which must be clearly marked as a "replacement" or "duplicate." In most cases, you can get P60 replaced within a few working days.

When contacting your employer to get replacement P60 re-issued, include the following in your request:

• Your full name and National Insurance number
• The tax year you need the P60 for (e.g., 2024/25 or 2025/26)
• Your payroll or employee ID number, if known
• A polite written request (email is best for a paper trail)
• Specify whether you prefer paper delivery or electronic transmission

Most employers can produce a replacement quickly through their payroll software. Paper filers can order blank P60 stationery from HMRC if needed. Either way, once the employer processes the request, you should be able to get P60 without further complication. Keep a copy of your request email as evidence of having asked for the replacement.

Step 3: What to Do If Your Former Employer Has Closed

If the company no longer exists or has been taken over, you may not be able to get your P60 from them directly. In this situation, HMRC becomes your next port of call — see Section 4 below for detailed steps on how to get replacemet P60 when the employer route is closed.

Employer Obligations: Issuing and Replacing P60s

Employers have specific legal duties regarding P60 issuance. Understanding these responsibilities helps both parties navigate the process smoothly when an employee asks to get P60 replaced. For full details, refer to the official P60 guidance on GOV.UK.

Who Must Receive a P60?

• All employees on your payroll who are still employed on the last day of the tax year (5 April).
• Employees who left during the tax year do not receive a P60 — they should already have been given a P45 on departure.
• A separate P60 is issued for each employment, so an employee with two jobs receives two P60s.
• Part-time workers receive a P60 if they were employed on 5 April, regardless of hours worked.
• Employees on maternity, paternity, or sick leave during the tax year are entitled to a P60 if still employed on 5 April.

Key Deadlines and Delivery Methods

Penalties for Non-Compliance

Failure to issue a P60 by the statutory deadline can result in HMRC penalties. The amount depends on the number of employees affected and the severity of the delay. Employers who consistently fail to meet their PAYE obligations may face escalating penalties, making timely compliance essential. For employees, if your employer fails to help you with your P60 replacemt by the deadline, you have the right to escalate the matter to HMRC.

Employers using paper-based payroll systems should order blank P60 forms from HMRC well before the end of February each year to ensure they have sufficient stock for issuing certificates by the 31 May deadline. Online payroll software automatically generates and issues P60s electronically, reducing administrative burden and eliminating the risk of postal loss. Digital P60s sent via email (often protected with password encryption based on your date of birth or National Insurance number) are equally valid and often preferred by employees for ease of storage and retrieval.

What to Do If Your Employer Cannot Help

Sometimes, despite your best efforts, you simply cannot get a P60 from the employer — perhaps the company has ceased trading, records were destroyed, or the employer is unresponsive. Fortunately, HMRC offers alternative routes to access the same information that would appear on your P60, helping you get P60 data even when the original document is unreachable. If you need to get your P60 urgently and the employer route has failed, the three options below are your best bet.

Option 1: Use Your Personal Tax Account

Your Personal Tax Account on GOV.UK displays your employment history, pay, and tax details for each tax year. While it is not a formal P60 replacement, it contains the same figures and is widely accepted as proof of income. Signing in is free and instant — you can log in using your Government Gateway user ID or via the GOV.UK One Login service (the unified system HMRC is migrating accounts to). This is often the fastest way to get P60 information when time is tight.

To access your details through the Personal Tax Account, follow these steps: First, visit gov.uk/sign-in-personal-tax-account and log in with your credentials. If you are locked out or missing credentials, you can reset your security details online via GOV.UK One Login using photo identity verification. Once logged in, navigate to the "Income" section and select "Employment" to view a list of your current and previous jobs. Click on the relevant tax year to see a breakdown of total earnings, tax deducted, and National Insurance contributions. You can download or print this Employment History Record as a PDF.

Practical Note on Mortgage Lenders: While most UK mortgage lenders and underwriters accept an official HMRC Employment History Record or SA302 calculation, some strict underwriting teams specifically mandate an original P60 or an official accountant's verification letter. Check with your broker or lender early to confirm their criteria.

Option 2: Use the HMRC App

The HMRC app is available on iOS and Android and provides quick access to your pay and tax figures by year. It is particularly convenient for checking figures on the go when you need to get P60 urgently and cannot wait for postal correspondence. Download the app from your device's app store, sign in using your Government Gateway details or GOV.UK One Login, and navigate to the employment section to view historical earnings data by tax year.

Option 3: Contact HMRC by Phone

If online options are unavailable or you are locked out of your account, call HMRC on 0300 200 3300 (Monday to Friday). An adviser can provide an official statement of earnings showing the same data that would appear on your P60. Have your National Insurance number ready when you call. While this route will not let you get the actual P60 as an official document from an employer, it gives you verified HMRC figures. The telephone service operates between 8am and 6pm, Monday to Friday, excluding bank holidays.

Common Reasons You Might Need to have P60

Understanding why people need their P60 helps clarify its real-world importance. Here are the most common scenarios where you might need to retrieve P60 your quickly:

Top 5 Situations Where a P60 Is Required

• Mortgage applications — Lenders typically ask for the most recent P60 alongside payslips to verify annual income.
• Tax refund claims — If you overpaid tax during the year, your P60 confirms the exact amounts deducted. Note that under HMRC rules, there is a strict 4-year tax claim limit (statute of limitations) to reclaim overpaid Income Tax.
• Universal Credit and benefits — The DWP may request your P60 to calculate entitlement accurately.
• Opting out of or auditing pension schemes — Workplace pension providers use P60 figures to confirm contribution levels.
• Visa and immigration applications — The Home Office may require P60 evidence as proof of UK employment and earnings.

In each of these cases, being unable to find P60 promptly can cause delays, missed deadlines, and unnecessary stress. Preparing in advance by knowing how to get replacement P60 through each available channel ensures you are never caught off guard when a lender, landlord, or government agency comes asking.

P60 vs P45: Understanding the Difference

Many people confuse the P60 and P45, but they serve entirely different purposes. Confusing them can lead to errors when submitting documents to lenders or HMRC — and it can also cause confusion when you are trying to get P60 but actually need a P45, or vice versa. Understanding when each form is issued helps you know exactly which document to request and from whom.

A common scenario where confusion arises is when someone starts a new job in the middle of the tax year. They will receive a P45 from their former employer showing earnings up to their leaving date, but they will not receive a P60 from that employer until the following May — and only if they were still employed on 5 April. Similarly, employees on fixed-term contracts ending before the tax year concludes will receive a P45 but cannot expect a P60 for that particular employment.

Regarding historical limits: HMRC can typically provide pay and tax summaries going back up to 4 years for refund claims, aligned with statutory limits. Employers retain basic payroll data for 3 to 6 years, making historical requests for older P60 forms straightforward within these windows, but significantly harder for periods beyond 6 years.

Side-by-Side Comparison

If you left a job before 5 April, you will receive a P45, not a P60. You cannot get a P60 for a job you left partway through the tax year — the P45 covers that period instead. Understanding this distinction saves time and prevents frustration when you set out to get a P60 from the correct employer. Keep both documents safely stored, as each serves different verification purposes throughout the year.