Questions about reclaiming tax.

Robster88

Hello

I have a few questions about reclaiming tax on both my income and savings and am hoping some of the knowledgeable people here will enlighten me.

I am currently taking a Gap Year before heading off the University in September and started a part time job in November 2007. My income up to the start of this tax year have been below the tax threshold. I was paid roughly £3650 before tax and NI and I believe last years tax threshold was £5220 (My tax code was 522L anyway).

This has been my first job and therefore I am relatively uneducated when it comes to taxation but am I correct in thinking that my annual £5220 tax free allowance is split into weeks or months meaning that I am allowed to earn roughly £100 a week (or £400 a month, dividing 5220 by 13 as I believe I get 13 pay checks a year not 12) before I have to pay tax. I would then pay 10% tax on any earning over that (seeing as this was last year) regardless of whether or not my total earnings for the tax year are below the tax threshold - in other words they extrapolate my monthly earnings to guess at the yearly earnings and tax me accordingly.

As I only worked for 6 months in the last tax year my total earnings were under the tax threshold despite my monthly earnings being over it. I paid about £255 in tax (not quite sure where they get that figure from, works out at roughly £50 tax a month on £700 income - is that right?)

Will I be able to claim back the tax I paid last year and how do I go about doing it? I thought the relevant form was the P50 but having read through it implies you can only fill it in if you are currently unemployment (and you need to send of your P45 as well) How can I claim back the tax when I am still working - is that possible? The last tax year is over so it is not as if I will earn be earning more so that I would have to pay tax.

Also (sorry I have a lot of questions! ) I filled in an R85 last year as I wasn't earning and so wanted to get gross interest on my accounts. My annual income will be lower than the tax threshold but my weekly allowance is over it - should I inform my bank as or as my annual allowance is under is it OK?

I think that is all my questions for now!

Hope someone out there will be able to help :A

jem16

Have you got your P60 for this job yet? Once you get the P60 send it (take a photocopy first) to the tax office dealing with your tax affairs along with a covering letter to say that you are entitled to a tax rebate.

As to the R85 you can fill this in if you know you will be under the personal allowance for the whole year.

Robster88

Thanks jem16.

I haven't received my P60 yet no - didn't know anything about it! Having read up a little about it it seems that I should receive it by the end of May. Will it be sent in the post or given to me by the employer (or does that vary)? Hopefully I won't have to wait too long for it as I want to get the ball rolling and hopefully get some of this hard earned cash back!

wubix

Hi there.
If you just call your local tax office (or contact centre as it more likely is) tell them your national insurance number and they will be able to sort your repayment out right then. Your right in thinking you get any tax back if over the last tax year you earnt under the threshold. You should get a cheque within 10 days.

jem16

Robster88 wrote: »

Thanks jem16.

I haven't received my P60 yet no - didn't know anything about it! Having read up a little about it it seems that I should receive it by the end of May. Will it be sent in the post or given to me by the employer (or does that vary)?

It does vary. Most are given but some are sent.

If you just call your local tax office (or contact centre as it more likely is) tell them your national insurance number and they will be able to sort your repayment out right then.

Very unlikely. HMRC won't have all the information from employers yet. A P60 will be needed.

You should get a cheque within 10 days.

Also very unlikely at this time of year. More likely to be 4/6 weeks depending on the tax office.

CLAPTON

Are you sure your tax code was 552L and not something like 522L M1 or Wk1
Because if your code was 522L then your tax should automatically have been calculate correctly; if however it was 522L Wk1 or M1 it won't

Similarly, chck your code for this year and make sure its 543L without any additional letters or numbers.

Robster88

My tax code was 522L 1 (the 1 is typed quite a bit from the 522L but still in the tax code box. On my most recent pay check however it is 543L 0

Is that significant - i'd never really noticed it before?

CLAPTON

yes it is significant ... it means wk or month 1 .... so instead of getting a cumumulative tax allowance they give you 1/12 each month.

By way of example : last year you say you did not work from april to november

so when you started in november you were entitled to a tax free allowance of
5225 x 8/12 (i.e. 8 months worth april thru November)
but with a 522L 1 code you were only give a one month allowance i.e 5225/12

which is why you have paid too much tax and need to reclaim it.

By the way, this year, you will be taxed as if you are working for the whole year... so by september, if you stop working you will have paid too much tax and will need to reclaim that.

Robster88

Thanks thats really helped clarified things, and I'll remember to reclaim the tax that I end up paying this year as your right I should be able to do that as well seeing as I won't be working for a full year again. I will just have to wait and hope that I get my P60 soon. It'll be a nice little bonus.

Oh there is one more thing. Where do I send my P60 copy and letter? How do I know the tax office dealing with my tax? Is it a regional thing?

fengirl_2

You send your original P60, not a copy, to the address shown on the P60. If the address is not there, ask your employer for it.

Robster88

Thanks everyone, will look forward to getting my check now.