Taxable pay.

[Lil Laura]

Today I got paid. Yay.

On my wage slip, amongst my 'totals to date', I have 'taxable pay'. Next to this is a minus figure. I have been told that this means I am owed a rebate.

Is this true, or am I being cruelly misled to believe that I might get some extra money?

The end. :)

[Joolyknockers]

Possibly, it is hard to say without seeing. Most of the payslips I see at work would usually show a minus sign in the tax paid this month column. Has your tax code changed in the last couple weeks or is a new job? Or have you decreased your hours?

[Lil Laura]

It's the same job and I've been doing the same sort of hours. I have no idea about my tax code. I don't usually pay tax though, and I have the past couple of months (not much though) if that makes a difference?

[Joolyknockers]

Originally posted by Lil Laura
It's the same job and I've been doing the same sort of hours. I have no idea about my tax code. I don't usually pay tax though, and I have the past couple of months (not much though) if that makes a difference?

On your payslip, look in the box which tells you how much is going into your bank account. Has it increased? Has the amount in the Tax Paid To Date box decreased in comparision from your last payslip? Tax rebates should really be shown clearly by the employer on the payslip so the employee knows what is going on.

The only thing I can think of, off the top of my head and without seeing your payslip is that you could have previously been on a code like 474L X and now your code has changed to just 474L. If you are a low earner sometimes that generates a rebate as you won't have been receiving the benefit of your tax free personal allowances on a cumulative basis (i.e a code that take into account weeks where you haven't earned enough to pay tax)

[Lil Laura]

Wow, it's all confusing stuff.

I've been paid less than I was last month, and the taxable pay bit has gone from -150ish to -130ish (my head starts to hurt when i try and figure out if thats an increase or a decrease). The tax code is 0474L and I can't find a payslip from the last few months where it's been anything different.

I think I'll mention it to someone at work and see if they can shed any light on it, just wondered if it was something nice and simple, heh. Thanks. :)

[Joolyknockers]

Good plan. Ring through to your works payroll department and they should be able to explain.

You taxable pay is basically the amount of pay that you are liable to tax on, so if you got paid £120 per week, you deduct your £91 per week worth of Personal Allowance, the remaining £29 is the taxable amount. So seeing as your taxable pay is now in minus figures I would imagine that it should generate a rebate, but why that rebate wasn't in the same pay packet I don't know.