Heavily taxed this month and not sure why - help!!

samsam89

Just got my December wages through from my work and they are roughly £400 short of what I normally bring home...(between £1000 and £1100).

I wanted to earn more money and have recently taken on a second casual job at a bar on a CWA. For which I have brought home roughly £150 for the last 2 fortnights.

I received notice that my new tax code for my main, full time job was being changed for the yr 2013-2014 to 686L (it was previously 944L), and that the tax code for my casual bar work job would be 257T.

I appear this month (CHRISTMAS!!) to have been clobbered for roughly £400 tax in my main job. I normally bring home 1000-1100 per month after tax and am now only looking at 650 which seems incredibly low...

I know they say you pay more tax if you have more than one job, but this seems just ridiculously high for the amount I earn.

Could anyone explain what might be going on, as I'm at a loss. Not sure what's happened! I've effectively earned less money with two jobs than I would have done with just one main one?!

Thanks!

jem16

samsam89 wrote: »

I know they say you pay more tax if you have more than one job, but this seems just ridiculously high for the amount I earn.

No you won't. You will pay exactly the same tax if you have multiple jobs as you would with one job.

Could anyone explain what might be going on, as I'm at a loss. Not sure what's happened!

Your tax-free personal allowance has been split between the two jobs so that you will get some tax-free on each. This is advantageous if your don't earn more than £9440 with one job. If you do earn more than this in your main employment there is no real benefit to splitting the tax code and you would as well be on 944L for the main job and BR ( all at 20% ) for the 2nd job.

I've effectively earned less money with two jobs than I would have done with just one main one?!

You won't have. This month there would be more tax taken than normal as your tax code has been lowered on your main job. Depending on what the bar job tax code was, you may get a rebate on that one. What tax code was used for the bar job and how long have you had it?

Figures for each job and tax code for each job would be helpful if you want more info.

samsam89

jem16 wrote: »

No you won't. You will pay exactly the same tax if you have multiple jobs as you would with one job.



Your tax-free personal allowance has been split between the two jobs so that you will get some tax-free on each. This is advantageous if your don't earn more than £9440 with one job. If you do earn more than this in your main employment there is no real benefit to splitting the tax code and you would as well be on 944L for the main job and BR ( all at 20% ) for the 2nd job.



You won't have. This month there would be more tax taken than normal as your tax code has been lowered on your main job. Depending on what the bar job tax code was, you may get a rebate on that one. What tax code was used for the bar job and how long have you had it?

Figures for each job and tax code for each job would be helpful if you want more info.

My main job tax code was 944L and is now 686L.

My bar job tax code has been put as 257T.

I've had the bar job tax code since the end of November.

patanne

If you have only recently started your second job then I would have expected your full time tax code to be W1/M1. Have you had the notification from HMRC telling you the new codes? If you have does it say something silly like taxing you in a special way? (You should have had two letters, one for each job.) If it does then I suspect your employer has applied it incorrectly. Also check what your second job is taxing you at.

patanne

So there is little chance of you earning over £2500 before 5th April in your second job? Do let us know what the letters say please.

jem16

samsam89 wrote: »

My bar job tax code has been put as 257T.

I've had the bar job tax code since the end of November.

Was it different before or is that when you started?

You haven't given any figures for each job so can't tell you if this is sensible or not.

samsam89

jem16 wrote: »

Was it different before or is that when you started?

You haven't given any figures for each job so can't tell you if this is sensible or not.

That is when I started working there.

I am due to be paid £650 from my main job AFTER tax, NI and pension deduction, I usually receive £1000-1100 per month AFTER tax, NI and pension deduction also. (In my head I've been paid roughly 300 this month from the bar and now 650 from my main job = 950...).

I don't have my wage slip at hand so I can't provide exact figures for tax as I have only just noticed the pending transaction on my online banking.

In response to the other post, no I doubt very much that I will earn more than £2500 before end of April at the Bar.

jem16

samsam89 wrote: »

That is when I started working there.

I am due to be paid £650 from my main job AFTER tax, NI and pension deduction, I usually receive £1000-1100 per month AFTER tax, NI and pension deduction also. (In my head I've been paid roughly 300 this month from the bar and now 650 from my main job = 950...).

As you're obviously earning more than £9440 in your main job, I would phone up HMRC and ask for 944L to be applied to that job and BR to be applied to your bar job.

In my head I've been paid roughly 300 this month from the bar and now 650 from my main job = 950

That's happened as you're paying extra tax this month because the tax code has been lowered. It wouldn't be that normally.

samsam89

jem16 wrote: »

As you're obviously earning more than £9440 in your main job, I would phone up HMRC and ask for 944L to be applied to that job and BR to be applied to your bar job.



That's happened as you're paying extra tax this month because the tax code has been lowered. It wouldn't be that normally.

Brilliant advice! Makes sense to do that. I had assumed this would have been done automatically but obviously not.

Many many thanks! Most appreciated!!!

jem16

samsam89 wrote: »

Brilliant advice! Makes sense to do that. I had assumed this would have been done automatically but obviously not.

I would have said it's normal not to split the tax code unless there is an obvious reason to.

With your situation, I would have expected BR to be applied to the 2nd job.