Households urged to claim £473 from HMRC as letters land on doormats – 11 payslip codes that reveal if you’re due cash

HMRC is urging households to claim back hundreds of pounds worth of cash.

The tax office has sent out letters to inform a number of households about an income tax refund they are owed.

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There are several reasons you may have overpaid your tax, such as being put on the wrong tax code, starting to receive a pension at work, or receiving Employment and Support Allowance or Jobseekers’ Allowance.

Between June and August, the tax man sent out around four million P800 letters informing people that they are due a refund.

And now HMRC has taken to social media to encourage households to claim money they are due back.

In a statement the office said: “Received a letter saying you have a tax refund to claim?

“There could be an average of £473 waiting for you. Download the HMRC app to find out how you can claim it.”

If you receive a letter there should be a link included that will let you choose which bank account you want your refund paid into.

Households can also download the HMRC app and complete the return via their smart phone or tablet.

Customers who have downloaded the app can also track their tax via the app to ensure they are on the right tax code.

If you’ve received a letter but don’t have access to a computer or phone with internet, you can contact HMRC via phone or post.

The phone number to call is 0300 200 3300 while any post should be addressed to:

• Pay As You Earn and Self Assessment
• HM Revenue and Customs
• BX9 1AS
• United Kingdom

It is also important to check your payslip regularly to ensure you are on the right tax code and not overpaying.

What are the different tax codes?

Your tax code indicates how much you should be paying out to HMRC each month.

Below we have explained what the different codes mean:

• L – You’re entitled to the standard tax-free Personal Allowance
• M – Marriage Allowance: you’ve received a transfer of 10% of your partner’s personal allowance (£1,260)
• N – Marriage Allowance: you’ve transferred 10 per cent of your personal allowance to your partner
• S – Your income or pension is taxed using the rates in Scotland
• T – Your tax code includes other calculations to work out your personal allowance, for example, it’s been reduced because your estimated annual income is more than £100,000
• 0T – Your personal allowance (which is currently £12,570) has been used up, or you’ve started a new job and your employer doesn’t have the details they need to give you a tax code
• BR – All your income from this job or pension is taxed at the basic rate (usually used if you’ve got more than one job or pension)
• D0 – All your income from this job or pension is taxed at the higher rate (usually used if you’ve got more than one job or pension)
• D1 – All your income from this job or pension is taxed at the additional rate (usually used if you’ve got more than one job or pension)
• NT – You’re not paying any tax on this income
• Tax codes starting with K mean you have income that isn’t being taxed another way and it’s worth more than your tax-free allowance.

If HMRC does not receive information about your workplace or salary changes, then sometimes it will fail to change your tax code.

This means the perfect time to check is when you’ve moved.

If you reckon you’ve been landed with the wrong tax code, you should contact HMRC sooner rather than later.

The quickest way to do this is typically via the phone on 0300 200 3300.