PAYE Explained: How UK Pay As You Earn Tax Works
If you're employed in the UK, PAYE is almost certainly how you pay tax — but most people have never had it explained plainly. Here's what it actually means, how your employer works out the numbers on your payslip, and what to check if something looks off.
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PAYE stands for Pay As You Earn. It's the system HMRC uses to collect Income Tax and National Insurance from employees, taking the money directly out of your pay before it reaches your bank account — rather than you calculating and paying it yourself once a year.
Your employer runs PAYE on HMRC's behalf. Every time you're paid, they work out how much tax and National Insurance you owe on that payment, deduct it, send it to HMRC, and pay you the remainder — your take-home pay.
PAYE is not a tax in itself. It's the collection mechanism for Income Tax, National Insurance, and — where applicable — student loan repayments and workplace pension contributions.
How PAYE Is Calculated
Each pay period, your employer's payroll software works through the same basic steps:
- Takes your gross pay for that period (before any deductions)
- Applies your tax code to work out how much of that pay is tax-free (your Personal Allowance, spread across the year)
- Calculates Income Tax on the taxable portion, using the 2026/27 tax bands
- Calculates National Insurance separately, based on National Insurance thresholds rather than your tax code
- Deducts any student loan repayment or pension contribution due
- Pays you the remainder as your net (take-home) pay
For 2026/27, the standard tax-free Personal Allowance is £12,570 a year. Income above that is taxed at 20% up to £50,270, 40% up to £125,140, and 45% above that. National Insurance is calculated separately — most employees pay 8% on earnings between £12,570 and £50,270, and 2% above that.
What Gets Deducted Under PAYE
| Deduction | What it's based on | Always applies? |
|---|---|---|
| Income Tax | Your tax code and taxable income | Yes, above your Personal Allowance |
| National Insurance | Earnings above the NI threshold (£12,570) | Yes, for most employees |
| Student Loan | Earnings above your repayment plan's threshold | Only if you have an eligible student loan |
| Workplace Pension | Your contribution rate and pensionable pay | Only if enrolled (auto-enrolment applies to most employees) |
PAYE and Your Tax Code
Your tax code is what tells PAYE how much of your income should be tax-free. The standard 2026/27 code is 1257L, meaning the full £12,570 Personal Allowance applies. If your code is wrong — a common issue after changing jobs, taking on a second job, or a change in circumstances — your PAYE deductions will be wrong too, meaning you could overpay or underpay tax without realising.
For the full breakdown of what each tax code letter and number means, see our Tax Codes Explained guide.
PAYE vs Self Assessment
PAYE is for employees. If you're self-employed, a sole trader, or have income HMRC doesn't already know about (rental income, dividends, side-hustle earnings), you instead report and pay tax through Self Assessment — filing an annual tax return and paying what you owe directly, rather than having it deducted automatically.
Some people do both: if you're employed but also have self-employed income, your PAYE job is taxed as normal, and you separately declare and pay tax on the self-employed portion via Self Assessment.
What If Your PAYE Is Wrong?
The most common cause of incorrect PAYE deductions is an incorrect tax code — for example, an emergency code applied after starting a new job, or a BR code (flat 20%) left over from a previous second job. Compare your payslip's tax code, gross pay, and deductions against what they should be for your income.
If something looks wrong, contact HMRC on 0300 200 3300 with your National Insurance number, or check your tax code through your Personal Tax Account at gov.uk. Overpaid tax is usually refunded automatically once your correct code is applied.
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