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Second job tax code: how your allowance is shared between jobs

Your Personal Allowance is usually used once, on the job that pays you most. A second job then gets BR, D0 or D1, and you can ask HMRC whether the allowance can be split between your jobs.

Updated . Facts checked against GOV.UK on .

How the allowance is shared

Each job or pension has its own tax code. GOV.UK says your Personal Allowance is usually given to the job that pays you most, and that job takes 1257L. Your other jobs then get a rate code.

The allowance cannot be used twice. Across all your jobs, the Personal Allowance is £12,570 for the year in total. Once it has been set against one job, every other job is taxed from the first pound, unless HMRC has split it.

What BR, D0, D1 and NT mean

These are the codes you will see on a second job or pension. GOV.UK says BR, D0 and D1 are usually used when you have more than one job or pension.

  • BR: all the income from this job or pension is taxed at the basic rate, which is 20% in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
  • D0: all the income is taxed at the higher rate, which is 40% in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
  • D1: all the income is taxed at the additional rate, which is 45% in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Scottish codes (SD0 to SD3) use Scottish rates.
  • NT: no tax is taken from this income. NT is rare. If you see it and do not expect it, check with HMRC.
  • The BR tax code: all of a job’s pay taxed at 20%, usually on a second job

Starting a second job

When you start a second job, GOV.UK says to use the starter checklist rather than a P45. The checklist is now an online form, and a PDF is available if you cannot use it. Make sure the checklist says that you already have another job.

That means statement C, which gives BR. The statement reads “I have another job and/or I am in receipt of a State, workplace or private pension”. Your employer uses the statement you choose to pick your starting code (BR for statement C) and reports you to HMRC on or before your first payday. HMRC then sends a code that replaces it.

A P45 is only issued when a job ends. If your main job is continuing, do not use a P45 from it for the second job.

Splitting your Personal Allowance

If your main job pays less than the full allowance, the second job on BR may take more tax than it needs to. GOV.UK says to contact HMRC to check whether your Personal Allowance can be split between your jobs. A split can reduce how much tax is taken from your other job.

GOV.UK warns that if your Personal Allowance is split and your income varies or is irregular, you might not pay the right amount of tax. Ask HMRC before you rely on a split, and check it again if your hours change.

Self-employed income is a separate question. GOV.UK says that if your total self-employed income is £1,000 or less, you may not have to tell HMRC or declare it on a tax return. Above that, Self Assessment may apply.

Try the main and second job example

The calculator preset below has two jobs. The main job is £12.71 an hour for 25 hours a week, on 1257L. The second job is £12.71 an hour for 10 hours a week, on BR. Look at how the second job is taxed compared with the main job.

Then try putting the second job on 1257L as well. Two jobs on 1257L would count the full allowance twice, unless HMRC has split it. That is the point to check with HMRC.

What to check

Look at the code on each payslip. Between them, the jobs should show one 1257L code at most, unless HMRC has split the allowance.

  • A second job is normally on BR, D0 or D1. A 0T on a second job can be right if your allowance is already used up elsewhere, but if you have just started and sent no P45 or checklist, it may be the temporary no-information code, so check it.
  • If both jobs show 1257L, the allowance is being counted twice. Contact HMRC.
  • If your combined pay from all jobs is likely to go above £50,270 in the year, BR on the second job may under-tax the extra, so tell HMRC and check you are not building up a bill.

Reading each payslip in context

A second job on BR can look expensive on its own payslip, because every pound is taxed at 20% from the first pound. That is what BR is designed to do.

Judge the codes by your total pay across all your jobs for the tax year. If your total income is within the basic rate, BR on the second job is usually correct, even though it looks heavy on that one payslip.

The year-end check

After 5 April, HMRC compares the tax you paid across all your jobs with the tax you should have paid. If the codes did not match your total income, a P800 letter can show a refund or a bill. The refund steps are covered in the guide on emergency tax refunds.

Related guides

Sources

This is an estimate, not financial or tax advice. Your payslip is the final figure.