P55

Form P55: a pension payment that did not empty the pot

You took a taxable payment from a pension pot, the pot is not empty, and you are not taking any more this tax year. The provider taxed it on 1257L on a month 1 basis; P55 asks HMRC to refund the difference now.

Who it is for

You took a lump sum or flexible payment and left money in the pot.
You will not take another taxable payment from it before 5 April.
The provider could not refund the tax themselves; on a first payment they usually cannot.

How to claim

1Sign in to GOV.UK and complete P55 online, or fill in the interactive PDF, print, sign and post it.
2Enter the payment and the tax taken off exactly as the provider’s paperwork shows.
3Estimate every other source of income for the year; HMRC uses these to work out what is really due.
4Submit and keep the reference or a copy.

What happens next

HMRC aims to repay within 30 days by bank transfer. It reviews the year again after 5 April, so an estimate that turns out wrong is corrected then.

What to have ready

The payslip or P45 from the pension provider showing the gross payment and the tax deducted.
Your National Insurance number and the provider’s PAYE reference, from their paperwork.
Your expected income for the rest of the tax year from every source: pay, other pensions, State Pension, benefits, interest.
Gift Aid donations and pension contributions, if any.

Worth knowing

Take another taxable payment later in the year and the calculation changes: the provider applies the code HMRC sent and HMRC reconciles at the year end.

The form on GOV.UK

Claim back tax on a flexibly accessed pension payment, form P55 (GOV.UK)

Open the lump sum tool

P55, box by box

Every screen of the form, with what goes in each box, or shown as it looks on GOV.UK.

Your figures for the form

Type them in and the boxes below fill in. They are on the payslip or P45 your pension provider sent with the payment.

Total taken out of the pension

The gross payment, before tax, including any tax-free part.

How much of it was tax-free

Usually 25% of the payment. The provider’s paperwork shows it separately; the rest is the taxable part the form asks for.

Tax deducted by the provider

From the same payslip or P45.

Other income you expect this tax year

Pay, other pensions, State Pension and taxable benefits, before tax. Leave blank if none.

Done online

Form P55: claim back tax on a flexibly accessed pension payment

For a taxable payment from a pot you have not emptied, when you will not take any more from it this tax year. Six short screens online, or the same boxes on the printed form. HMRC usually repays within 30 days.

Run the calculator above and the payment, the tax taken off and your other income are filled in here.

Every box can be typed into, here or on the redrawn screens, and what you type stays in the box while you read the rest.

Show the pages as

Screen 1 of 5

About you

Your details as HMRC holds them. The National Insurance number is how the claim is matched to your record; check it against a payslip or your letter from HMRC.

Section
Full name
As HMRC has it. If you have changed your name, update HMRC first or the claim can be held up.
From your records
Section
National Insurance number
Two letters, six numbers, one letter, for example QQ 12 34 56 C. On payslips, your P60 and HMRC letters.
From your records
Section
Date of birth
Used with your National Insurance number to find your record.
From your records
Section
Address and postcode
Where HMRC should write to you. Online, the address on your record is shown and you can update it.
From your records
Section
Telephone number
Optional, but a daytime number lets HMRC resolve a query without writing.
From your records

Screen 2 of 5

The pension payment

From the payslip or P45 your pension provider sent with the payment. The gross figure and the tax taken off are the two that matter; everything else identifies the scheme.

Section
Pension provider’s name
The scheme or company that made the payment, as it appears on the payslip or P45.
From your records
Section
Pension provider’s PAYE reference
A three-digit tax office number, a slash and a reference (for example 123/AB456). It is printed on the payslip or P45 the provider sent.
From your records
Section
Date of the payment
The date the money was paid to you. It decides which tax year the payment falls in.
From your records
Section
Taxable part of the payment, before tax
The gross figure on the payslip or P45. If a quarter was paid tax-free (25%), enter only the taxable part: the provider’s paperwork shows it separately.
From your records
£
Section
Tax taken off the payment
From the same payslip or P45: what the provider deducted on 1257L on a month 1 basis.
From your records
£
Section
You have not taken all of the money from this pension
Put X. The P55 is only for a pot with money still in it; if it was emptied, use the P53Z or P50Z instead.
Put X
Ticked
Section
You do not expect any further payments from this pension in the tax year
Put X. If you will take more before 5 April, the refund is better left until the year end, when HMRC reconciles all the payments together.
Put X
Ticked

Screen 3 of 5

Your other income for the tax year

Everything else you expect to receive between 6 April and 5 April, before tax. HMRC needs it to work out the tax really due for the year; you told the calculator £0. Leave a box empty if you have none of that kind.

Section
Pay from employment expected in the year
Total before tax from all jobs for the whole tax year, including what you have already been paid. Use your latest payslip’s year-to-date figure plus what is still to come.
From your records
£
Section
Tax expected to be deducted from that pay
The tax your employer will take off over the year. Leave empty if you have no job.
From your records
£
Section
Other pensions expected in the year
Private, workplace or annuity income for the whole year, before tax, not counting the payment you are claiming on.
From your records
£
Section
State Pension expected in the year
The weekly amount times the weeks you receive it in the tax year. It is paid without tax taken off, which is why HMRC needs it here.
From your records
£
Section
Taxable state benefits
Jobseeker’s Allowance, contribution-based Employment and Support Allowance, Carer’s Allowance or Incapacity Benefit expected in the year. Universal Credit and Child Benefit are not taxable and are left out.
From your records
£
Section
Savings interest and dividends
Interest outside ISAs and any dividends expected in the year. HMRC uses them to check your savings allowances.
From your records
£
Section
Pension contributions and Gift Aid
Personal pension contributions and Gift Aid donations you will make in the year. They can increase the refund if you pay higher rate tax.
From your records
£

Screen 4 of 5

How to pay the refund

Your own bank or building society account, so the refund arrives by transfer. Never give a claims company’s details: they take a cut of money you can claim free.

Section
Name on the account
Your own name, or a joint account you are named on.
From your records
Section
Sort code
Six digits, from your bank card or banking app.
From your records
Section
Account number
Eight digits. Building society accounts may also need a roll number.
From your records
Section
Pay the refund to someone else (nominee)
Leave empty. Naming a nominee is how claims companies get paid; there is no reason to use it for your own refund.
Put X
Ticked

Screen 5 of 5

Declaration and submit

Read the summary, confirm the figures are correct to the best of your knowledge, and submit. Online you get a confirmation reference at once; keep it.

Section
The information I have given is correct and complete to the best of my knowledge
Put X. Online this is a tick box before the submit button.
Put X
Ticked
Section
Signature and date
On the printed form only. Online, submitting is the signature.
From your records

What happens after you submit

HMRC checks the figures against what your provider reported, works out the tax due on your income for the year and repays the difference to the bank account you gave, usually within 30 days. You get a P800-style calculation showing how it was worked out. If you take another taxable payment before 5 April, tell HMRC: the refund was based on there being no more.

Claim back tax on a flexibly accessed pension payment, form P55 (GOV.UK)