The P50 is HMRC's claim to get back Income Tax during the tax year after you've stopped working, rather than waiting until the year ends. You can use it if, for example, you've been unemployed for 4 weeks or more and aren't claiming taxable benefits, you've retired without a pension from your old employer, you don't expect to work again, or you've gone back to full-time study. The quickest route is HMRC's online claim.
Why there's a refund at all: tax through PAYE is collected on the assumption you'll keep earning all year, so stopping part way through often leaves you overtaxed. Everything below comes from HMRC's P50 guidance on GOV.UK, as of October 2026.
When the P50 is the right claim
| Your situation | What to do |
|---|---|
| Stopped work, no new job, not claiming taxable benefits | Claim on P50 |
| Unemployed but expect to start a new job within 4 weeks | Don't claim; your new employer repays through your salary |
| Claiming a taxable state benefit | Don't use P50; the benefit affects the calculation |
| Getting a pension from your former employer | Your pension provider repays, or HMRC repays after 5 April |
| Took a flexible payment from a pension | Use P55, or P50Z if you've taken all of it and stopped work |
| Took a small pension lump sum | Use P53 or P53Z |
| Still registered with an employment agency | You can't claim; ask the agency to send HMRC your final pay |
And if your last pay was before 5 April, in a previous tax year, there's a separate route for claiming a refund for that earlier year.
Before you start
- Make sure you've had your final pay from your employer.
- Check whether you'll get any other taxable income or benefits before the end of the tax year, including a works pension.
- Find parts 2 and 3 of your P45. If you don't have them, you'll need to explain why.
- Check your income isn't high enough that you should be doing a Self Assessment return instead.
What the claim asks for
- Your National Insurance number.
- Your employer's PAYE reference number, if you have it.
- Any self-employment profits made in the tax year.
- Any income since you left: pensions from a former employer, public service or forces pensions, personal pension annuities, small pensions paid as lump sums, State Pension and taxable benefits since 6 April.
- Other income such as property, trusts, commissions, tips, foreign income or profits from UK life insurance policies.
Your P45 shows how much tax you've paid on your salary so far in the tax year, which runs from 6 April to 5 April. That's the figure HMRC sets against the tax due on your income for the year.
Why stopping work often means a refund
PAYE spreads your tax-free Personal Allowance, usually £12,570 as of October 2026, across the whole tax year. If you stop working in, say, the autumn, you've only had part of that allowance set against your pay, even though your total income for the year may end up lower than you'd expect. The P50 lets HMRC look at the full year now and give back the difference, instead of leaving it until the year has ended.
Online or by post
The online claim is the quickest, and you sign in to use it. If you can't sign in, HMRC's interactive guidance lets you fill in the form online, print it, sign the declaration and post it. You can't save your progress, so gather everything before you begin.
Once HMRC has the claim, it confirms whether you're owed a refund or asks for more information. It says it may take 14 days to reply and asks you not to chase during that time. For postal claims, HMRC sends a payable order to you or a nominee you name; repayments can't be made by Bacs. If you don't have a bank account, you can name someone who does.
Other income you'll need to estimate
The claim works out tax for the whole year, so HMRC asks about income you might not think of as earnings. Beyond pay and pensions, check for rent from property, trust income, commissions, tips, foreign income and profits paid out on UK life insurance policies, plus any source you haven't listed elsewhere. Leaving one out doesn't make the refund bigger for long: HMRC compares the claim with what it knows after the tax year ends.
Self-employment profits made in the same tax year also go on the claim. If you've moved from a job into working for yourself, that income may mean there's little or nothing to refund, and you may need a Self Assessment return instead.
Flexible pension payments go through a different form, and our guide to reclaiming tax on a flexible pension payment explains it.
Why pensions change the form
Retirement is where people pick the wrong form. If you've retired and the only change is that your salary stopped, P50 fits. But if you've taken cash from a pension, HMRC has separate forms because the pension payment itself is often what was overtaxed. P55 is for a flexible payment from part of your pot, P50Z for when you've stopped working and taken all of it, and P53 for a small pension lump sum. Using the wrong one can delay your refund.
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If you've a regular pension from your old employer, you don't need any form: the provider adjusts your tax through your tax code, or HMRC repays after the tax year ends.
The verdict
If you've stopped working for good, or for the rest of the tax year, and you've no pension or benefits coming in, claim on P50 rather than waiting until after 5 April. Have parts 2 and 3 of your P45 ready, give honest estimates of any other income, and use the pension forms instead if a pension payment is part of the story.
A small pension lump sum has its own form, and our guide to claiming tax back on a small pension lump sum explains it.
Frequently asked questions
What is a P50 form?
It's HMRC's claim to get back Income Tax during the tax year when you've stopped working, for example after retiring or becoming unemployed.
Who can't claim on P50?
People still registered with an employment agency, people expecting a new job within 4 weeks, people on taxable state benefits, and people with a pension from their old employer.
Do I need my P45 to claim on P50?
You'll need parts 2 and 3 of your P45, or you must tell HMRC why you don't have them.
How long does a P50 refund take?
HMRC says it may take 14 days to get a reply, and asks you not to contact it during that period.
Should I use P50 if I've taken pension cash?
No. Use P55 for a flexibly accessed pension overpayment, or P53 or P53Z if you've taken a small pension lump sum.
