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United Kingdom / Guides / UK payroll year end: P60s, P11Ds and the April rhythm

United Kingdom · guide

UK payroll year end: P60s, P11Ds and the April rhythm

Updated 2026-08-14 · 8-min read · 4 primary sources

The short answer

The UK tax year ends on 5 April, and payroll year-end is a sequence of fixed dates that follow it rather than a single task. The final Full Payment Submission (FPS) of the year is due on or before employees' last payday, employees who were on payroll at year-end must receive a P60 by 31 May, and employers with unpayrolled benefits in kind must report P11D and P11D(b) forms — and pay any Class 1A National Insurance owed — by 6 July. From April 2027, HMRC begins mandating that the most common benefits be reported through payroll in real time rather than on a P11D, changing which of these steps a given employer needs at all.

Key facts — verified dates on each

P60 deadlineBy 31 May, to every employee who was on the payroll on 5 April · 2026-08-14
Final FPS of the tax yearOn or before employees' final payday of the tax year, marked as the final submission · 2026-08-14
P11D and P11D(b) reporting deadline6 July following the end of the tax year · 2026-08-14
Class 1A National Insurance payment deadline22 July if paid electronically, 19 July if paid by cheque · 2026-08-14

The tax year end is a date, not a task

The UK tax year runs from 6 April to 5 April the following year, and every payroll year-end obligation is timed off that 5 April boundary rather than off a company's own accounting year. This is a different clock from the one a limited company uses for its accounts and Corporation Tax return, which run from the company's own accounting reference date. A business can be mid-financial-year on its own books and still owe a full set of payroll year-end filings on the fixed HMRC calendar.

Because the deadlines are fixed calendar dates, every employer in the UK works to the same 5 April, 31 May and 6 July markers each year, regardless of its own incorporation date or accounting period.

The final payroll report of the year

Under Real Time Information (RTI), an employer reports pay and deductions to HMRC through a Full Payment Submission (FPS) at or before each payday, not in a single annual return. The last FPS of the tax year has to be marked as the final submission for the year and is due on or before employees' final payday of that tax year — the same routine timing as every other FPS during the year, just flagged as the last one.

If an employer misses that flag on the actual final payday, the correction is to submit an Employer Payment Summary (EPS) with the "final submission for year" indicator instead of resubmitting the FPS. Either way, this step has to happen before a P60 can correctly be produced, because the P60 draws on the full year's submitted payroll data.

P60s: who gets one, and by when

A P60 is the End of Year Certificate summarising an employee's total pay, tax and National Insurance for the tax year. Every employee who was on the payroll on 5 April — the last day of the tax year — must be given a P60, whether they are still employed at the point the P60 is issued or not, and the deadline for handing it over is 31 May following the end of that tax year.

A P60 can be issued on paper or electronically; since April 2023 employers have not needed an employee's prior agreement to issue it electronically. Employees use the P60 as evidence of income and tax paid for things like mortgage applications, tax credit and Universal Credit claims, and Self Assessment returns, so late issuance has knock-on effects for the employee even where it does not immediately touch HMRC.

P11D and P11D(b): reporting benefits that were not payrolled

A P11D reports taxable expenses and benefits in kind — company cars, private medical insurance, interest-free loans above the reporting threshold — provided to an employee during the tax year and not already taxed through payroll. A P11D(b) is the employer's own return declaring the total Class 1A National Insurance owed across all employees' benefits for the year. Both are only required for benefits not already "payrolled" — reported and taxed through PAYE in real time under HMRC's existing voluntary arrangement.

Both the individual P11D forms and the single P11D(b) for a tax year are due to HMRC, and copies must go to the relevant employees, by 6 July following the end of that tax year. Paper P11D and P11D(b) forms are no longer accepted; both must be filed online through PAYE Online or compatible payroll software.

The Class 1A National Insurance declared on the P11D(b) is a separate payment obligation from the filing itself, and it runs to a later date: payment must reach HMRC by 22 July if paid electronically, or 19 July if paid by cheque.

What happens when a filing is late

A late P11D(b) attracts an automatic penalty of £100 per 50 employees for each month or part month it remains outstanding after 6 July, and HMRC applies this without discretion once the deadline has passed. Interest and separate penalties also apply where the Class 1A National Insurance itself is paid late, distinct from the penalty for late filing of the return.

The P60 deadline does not carry a published fixed-penalty schedule in the same way, but a late P60 still creates practical pressure, since employees rely on it for mortgage applications, benefit claims and Self Assessment.

The shift to mandatory payrolling from April 2027

Payrolling benefits in kind — taxing them through PAYE across the year rather than reporting them after the fact on a P11D — is currently voluntary. That changes on a fixed schedule: from 6 April 2027, HMRC will require the most common benefits — company cars, car and van fuel, vans, and medical benefits — to be reported through payroll in real time rather than on year-end P11D forms. A second phase from 6 April 2028 brings in most remaining benefits, with employer-provided loans and accommodation staying on the existing process for now, which HMRC has assessed as particularly difficult to payroll in real time.

For an employer, this means the shape of "payroll year end" itself is scheduled to change: benefits that fall inside the 2027 or 2028 phases move out of the July P11D cycle and into the same real-time reporting that already applies to salary, with Class 1A National Insurance calculated through payroll rather than declared separately on a P11D(b).

Who this sits with

Payroll processing, RTI submissions, P60 issuance and P11D/P11D(b) preparation are typically handled by a payroll provider, bookkeeper, or accountant acting on an employer's instruction, but the underlying PAYE and National Insurance obligations remain the employer's. Preparing for mandatory payrolling — which benefits a business provides, and how they get captured through payroll software once the 2027 and 2028 phases apply — is a question for whoever runs that payroll.

CapEasy serves accounting and compliance clients in the United States and Australia today. UK payroll and compliance services are under consideration but not currently offered; this guide is provided for orientation only.

The figures, and when we checked them

These numbers change by year or by notification. Each one shows the date we last verified it against the source — if that date looks old, check the source before relying on it.

P60 deadline
By 31 May, to every employee who was on the payroll on 5 April · verified 2026-08-14
Final FPS of the tax year
On or before employees' final payday of the tax year, marked as the final submission · verified 2026-08-14
P11D and P11D(b) reporting deadline
6 July following the end of the tax year · verified 2026-08-14
Class 1A National Insurance payment deadline
22 July if paid electronically, 19 July if paid by cheque · verified 2026-08-14
Late P11D(b) filing penalty
£100 per 50 employees for each month or part month the P11D(b) is late · verified 2026-08-14
Mandatory payrolling of benefits in kind — phase 1 commencement
6 April 2027, covering company cars, car and van fuel, vans, and medical benefits · verified 2026-08-14
Mandatory payrolling of benefits in kind — phase 2 commencement
6 April 2028, covering most remaining benefits except employer-provided loans and accommodation · verified 2026-08-14

Questions on this

When does the UK tax year end, and why does that date drive payroll year-end?

The tax year ends on 5 April. Every payroll year-end deadline — the final FPS, the P60, the P11D and P11D(b) — is calculated from that fixed date, independent of a company's own accounting reference date.

What is a P60 and who has to receive one?

A P60 is an End of Year Certificate summarising an employee's total pay, Income Tax and National Insurance for the tax year. Every employee on the payroll on 5 April must be given one, by 31 May following the end of that tax year.

Can a P60 be sent electronically instead of on paper?

Yes. Since April 2023, employers have been able to issue P60s electronically — for example as a PDF or through a payroll portal — without needing the employee's prior agreement.

What is the difference between a P11D and a P11D(b)?

A P11D reports the taxable expenses and benefits in kind provided to a specific employee during the tax year that were not already taxed through payroll. A P11D(b) is the employer's single return declaring the total Class 1A National Insurance owed across all employees' reported benefits for that year.

Is every benefit in kind reported on a P11D?

No. Benefits an employer already payrolls — taxes through PAYE in real time under HMRC's voluntary arrangement — are excluded from that year's P11D, because they were already taxed through payroll rather than reported after the fact.

What is the deadline for P11D and P11D(b) filing?

6 July following the end of the tax year, for both the P11D forms and the P11D(b). Both must be filed online; paper forms are no longer accepted.

When is Class 1A National Insurance actually due?

Separately from the 6 July filing deadline, payment of the Class 1A National Insurance declared on the P11D(b) must reach HMRC by 22 July if paid electronically, or 19 July if paid by cheque.

What happens if a P11D(b) is filed late?

HMRC charges an automatic penalty of £100 per 50 employees for each month or part month the P11D(b) remains outstanding after 6 July. Separate interest and penalties can also apply if the Class 1A National Insurance itself is paid late.

What changes with mandatory payrolling of benefits in kind?

From 6 April 2027, HMRC will require the most common benefits — company cars, car and van fuel, vans, and medical benefits — to be reported and taxed through payroll in real time rather than on a year-end P11D. A second phase from 6 April 2028 brings in most remaining benefits, while employer-provided loans and accommodation stay on the existing P11D process for now.

Does mandatory payrolling remove the need for a P11D(b) entirely?

For benefits brought into mandatory payrolling, yes — they move to real-time reporting with Class 1A National Insurance calculated through payroll instead. Loans and accommodation, currently outside the phased scope, stay on the existing P11D process.

This page is information, not an offer of services. CapEasy serves the US and Australia today; UK services are under consideration.