Tax year

The tax year is not the calendar year

The UK tax year starts on 6 April and ends on 5 April. PAYE year-to-date figures, tax codes, annual payroll reports and P60s follow those dates even when the employer's financial year or leave year is different.

Within it, HMRC also uses tax months that run from the 6th of one month to the 5th of the next. A business can pay people weekly, fortnightly, four-weekly or monthly, but each payment and liability still belongs to a defined tax period. The running-payroll guide explains that monthly rhythm.

Close the old year before opening the new one

Send the final Full Payment Submission on or before the last payday of the tax year. In some circumstances, the final-year declaration goes through an Employer Payment Summary instead. The HMRC final-report instructions explain which report to use and how to correct year-to-date figures.

Then update payroll software, create the new year's employee records and apply the current coding instructions. Do not carry a figure, marker or rate forward simply because it appeared in the last run. Record which version of software, rates and codes opened the new year.

Finish the employee and employer tasks

The year-end job does not finish with the last submission. Employees still employed on 5 April need a P60 by the applicable deadline, and taxable expenses and benefits have their own reporting route and timetable. The annual payroll task list sets out the sequence.

Keep each tax year's reports and corrections separate. When a late adjustment is needed, follow the method for the year being corrected rather than putting an unexplained amount into the current run. That protects the employee's year-to-date totals and gives the employer a clean trail from the final payroll to the P60 and HMRC account.