Holiday Pay in New Tax Year

Rayleighboy

So having been unemployed for half of the 20-21 tax year, I started work in November and earnt less than my £12,500 tax allowance for 20-21. I left the job towards the end of March so assume I will be due a tax refund in the next few months. I started a new job this week but was owed holiday from the old job which has been paid today but shows as Week 1 on my pay slip and therefore counts towards this year's (21-22) tax year. Is this correct or should my previous employer made sure that any owed holiday pay was paid into the 20-21 allowance as soon as I left? Reason I ask is that I will certainly earn more than £12,570 this year and therefore not due a tax refund for 21-22 which the holiday pay has been paid into. 

Savvy_Sue

I don't think your employer has done anything wrong: if they weren't able to calculate your owed holiday pay until after they'd closed the March payroll, paying you in April is the obvious answer. 

I have a colleague whose last day at work was early in April, who is also owed holiday pay. We wondered whether to 'finish' them on 31st March and up their holiday pay, to 'tidy up' at the end of the tax year, but have in the end decided not to do that. 

Dazed_and_C0nfused

Rayleighboy said:

So having been unemployed for half of the 20-21 tax year, I started work in November and earnt less than my £12,500 tax allowance for 20-21. I left the job towards the end of March so assume I will be due a tax refund in the next few months. I started a new job this week but was owed holiday from the old job which has been paid today but shows as Week 1 on my pay slip and therefore counts towards this year's (21-22) tax year. Is this correct or should my previous employer made sure that any owed holiday pay was paid into the 20-21 allowance as soon as I left? Reason I ask is that I will certainly earn more than £12,570 this year and therefore not due a tax refund for 21-22 which the holiday pay has been paid into. 

Are you sure you are due a tax refund for 2020:21?

Was a cumulative tax code not in place between you starting work and being paid for the final time in 2020:21?

McKneff

If you earned less than your allowance in that tax year, you wouldn't have paid any tax ????, 
Where does your idea of getting a refund come from. 
Also, did you not have any income during the first half of the year, ie employment benefits etc which is taxable income

General_Grant

McKneff said:

If you earned less than your allowance in that tax year, you wouldn't have paid any tax ????, 
Where does your idea of getting a refund come from. 
Also, did you not have any income during the first half of the year, ie employment benefits etc which is taxable income

I think the OP may have thought that if the late holiday pay had been received in the last tax year it would not have attracted tax deduction.  So was hoping that, though it was paid in this tax year, the tax attributed to it could be refunded because it was actually due to be paid in a year when they didn't pay tax.

Your point about unemployment benefits needs to be considered by the OP - who, if in receipt of these taxable benefits should be receiving a P45 from the DWP.

TELLIT01

McKneff said:

If you earned less than your allowance in that tax year, you wouldn't have paid any tax ????, 
Where does your idea of getting a refund come from. 
Also, did you not have any income during the first half of the year, ie employment benefits etc which is taxable income

The OP may have paid tax if he was put on emergency coding.