Understanding Your UK Payslip: What Must Be On It and How to Read It

A payslip (also called a wage slip) is a document given to an employee by their employer each time they are paid. Under the Employment Rights Act 1996, employers in the United Kingdom are legally required to provide itemised payslips to all employees on or before their pay date. Since April 2019 this right was extended to workers — including casual workers, zero-hours contract workers, and agency workers.

What must a UK payslip include by law

Under the Employment Rights Act 1996, a payslip must show: gross earnings (the amount before any deductions); variable deductions (such as PAYE income tax — the amount may change each pay period); fixed deductions (such as pension contributions where the amount is consistent); net pay (the amount actually paid to the employee after all deductions); the amount and method of each part if payment is split across methods; and the number of hours worked where pay varies by hours. Missing any of these can be challenged at an employment tribunal.

PAYE income tax

PAYE (Pay As You Earn) is the system used by HMRC to collect income tax from employees as they earn, rather than at the end of the tax year. The amount deducted each pay period depends on your tax code — a reference number that tells your employer how much of your income is tax-free. For 2025/26 in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland: 0% on earnings up to £12,570 (Personal Allowance), 20% on £12,571–£50,270 (basic rate), 40% on £50,271–£125,140 (higher rate), 45% above £125,140 (additional rate). Scottish taxpayers have separate rates set by Holyrood — starter, basic, intermediate, higher, advanced, and top — applied if you live in Scotland. The payslipmaker.uk Payslip Generator includes a Scottish taxpayer toggle.

National Insurance contributions

National Insurance is a tax on earnings that funds state benefits including the State Pension, NHS, and unemployment benefits. Most employees pay Class 1 National Insurance. For 2025/26, the standard (Category A) employee rates are 8% on earnings between the Primary Threshold (£1,048/month) and the Upper Earnings Limit (£4,189/month), and 2% on earnings above the UEL. Employers also pay employer National Insurance at 13.8% on earnings above the Secondary Threshold (£417/month) — that is not deducted from your pay but represents an additional cost to your employer.

Student loan repayments

If you have a student loan, repayments are collected automatically through PAYE. The threshold and rate depend on your plan. Plan 1 (started before 1 September 2012): 9% above £24,990/year. Plan 2 (started 2012–2023): 9% above £27,295/year. Plan 4 (Scottish loans): 9% above £31,395/year. Plan 5 (post-2023 entrants in England): 9% above £25,000/year. Postgraduate Loan: 6% above £21,000/year. Postgraduate repayments stack on top of an undergraduate plan rather than replacing it.

Pension auto-enrolment

Since 2012, employers have been required to automatically enrol eligible workers into a workplace pension. The minimum contributions for 2025/26 are 5% from the employee and 3% from the employer, both calculated on qualifying earnings between £6,240 and £50,270 per year. Some employers use a different pension basis (such as total earnings) which can result in higher contributions. Tax relief on the employee contribution is given either via net pay arrangement (relief at the employee's marginal rate, before tax) or relief at source (basic-rate relief is added to the pension fund and higher-rate taxpayers claim the rest via Self Assessment).

When you might need a payslip

Payslips are routinely requested for mortgage applications (typically the last three months), loan applications, visa and immigration applications, rental applications, and Self Assessment record-keeping. The payslipmaker.uk Payslip Generator produces HMRC-compliant payslips with all legally required fields and the correct 2025/26 tax calculations.