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Pay & tax

Emergency Tax Calculator UK (2026/27)

On an emergency tax code, a one-off payment like a first pension withdrawal is often over-taxed. Enter the payment to see the emergency tax deducted, the tax actually due, and the overpayment you can reclaim. 2026/27 rates, free, no signup.

Free, no signup2026/27 ratesVerify at gov.uk
Your payment
The taxable pay or pension payment. For a pension, exclude your 25% tax-free cash.
£
Month 1 (1257L M1) for a monthly wage or a one-off pension. Week 1 (1257L W1) for weekly pay.
Income already taxed this tax year before this payment. Leave at 0 for a first pension withdrawal with no other income.
£
Likely overpaid (reclaimable)
£2,953
Emergency tax of £2,953 vs £0 actually due
Payment amount£10,000
Tax-free this period£12,570 ÷ 12£1,047.5
Taxed at 20%−£628.33
Taxed at 40%−£2,324.33
Emergency tax deducted30% of the payment−£2,952.67
Tax actually dueon a normal cumulative code£0
Overpaid, reclaim from HMRC£2,952.67
For a one-off pension withdrawal you can claim the overpaid tax back now with HMRC form P55, P53Z or P50Z, rather than waiting for the year-end. See our pension lump sum tax calculator.
2026/27 estimate, England, Wales & NI. Verify at gov.uk; not tax advice.
Simon Chadwick
Simon Chadwick
Founder, Orbit Money
Method: gov.uk 2026/27 emergency Month 1 / Week 1 PAYEUpdated: 16 July 2026Sources: gov.uk emergency tax codes, gov.uk claim back pension tax

What an emergency tax code does

An emergency tax code is a temporary code your employer or pension provider uses when they don’t yet have full details of your income for the year. You’ll see it written as 1257L W1, 1257L M1 or 1257L X. The W1, M1 or X means the code runs on a non-cumulative basis: your tax is worked out on that single week or month of pay on its own, as if you were paid that amount every period of the year.

For a steady wage that’s usually close to right. For a large one-off payment it’s not. Because only one twelfth of your Personal Allowance and each tax band is given against that payment, far more of the money is taxed at 40% or 45% than a normal cumulative code would charge. That is why a first pension withdrawal so often comes back smaller than expected.

Emergency tax on a pension lump sum

When you first flexibly access a pension, the provider almost always has to use a Month 1 emergency code, because HMRC hasn’t given them a tax code for you yet. Only £1,047.50 of the taxable payment is tax-free (£12,570 ÷ 12), the next £3,141.67 is taxed at 20%, the next £6,239.17 at 40%, and anything above that at 45%. On a £10,000 taxable withdrawal with no other income, that’s about £2,952 of tax deducted, even though the correct tax for the year on £10,000 alone is nil. The whole £2,952 is then reclaimable.

Applied to the paymentMonth 1 basisWeek 1 basis
Tax-free allowance£12,570 ÷ 12 = £1,047.50£12,570 ÷ 52 = £241.73
20% basic rate band£37,700 ÷ 12 = £3,141.67£37,700 ÷ 52 = £725.00
40% higher rate band£74,870 ÷ 12 = £6,239.17£74,870 ÷ 52 = £1,439.81
45% additional rateon the reston the rest

2026/27 figures for England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The £74,870 is the width of the 40% band (£125,140 less the £12,570 allowance and the £37,700 basic-rate band). Scotland uses different bands. This tool is a guide, not tax advice.

How to get your emergency tax back

If you were put on an emergency code at a new job, the usual fix is to give your employer your P45, or wait for HMRC to update your code. Once it switches to a cumulative code, any overpaid tax comes back through your pay, or via a P800 refund after the tax year ends.

For a pension withdrawal you don’t have to wait. You can reclaim the overpayment from HMRC straight away: use P55 if you took part of your pot and left the rest, P53Z if you emptied the pot and still have other taxable income, or P50Z if you emptied the pot and have no other taxable income. HMRC usually refunds within about 30 days.

How to use this calculator

  1. Enter the taxable payment. For a pension, leave out your 25% tax-free cash and enter only the taxable part.
  2. Choose the basis: Month 1 for a monthly wage or a one-off pension, Week 1 for weekly pay.
  3. Add any other taxable income already taxed this year, or leave it at 0 for a first pension withdrawal.
  4. Read the emergency tax deducted, the tax actually due, and the overpayment you can reclaim.

Frequently asked questions

How much emergency tax will I pay?
On an emergency Month 1 or Week 1 code, only one twelfth (or one fifty-second) of your £12,570 Personal Allowance and each tax band is applied to that single payment. On a large one-off, like a first pension withdrawal, that pushes far more of the payment into the 40% and even 45% bands than a normal cumulative code would. For example, a £10,000 taxable pension payment taken with no other income is taxed about £2,952 on a Month 1 code, even though the correct annual tax on £10,000 alone is nil. Enter your figures above to see your own emergency deduction and the likely overpayment.
Will I get emergency tax back?
Usually yes, if you have overpaid. On a new job, your code normally corrects itself once HMRC has your details from a P45 or your employer's first submission, and any overpayment is refunded through your pay over the following months. On a pension withdrawal you do not have to wait: you can reclaim the overpaid tax straight away using an HMRC form. Use this calculator to see how much you are likely owed.
What percentage is emergency tax in the UK?
There is no single emergency tax percentage. An emergency code still uses the normal 20%, 40% and 45% income tax rates, but applies your allowance and each band on a per-period basis instead of across the whole year. The effective rate you pay depends on the size of the payment. Small payments may be taxed at 20% or less, while large one-off payments can face an effective rate well above 20% because more of the money falls into the higher bands.
Is tax code 1257L an emergency tax code?
1257L on its own is the standard code for most people with one job and the full Personal Allowance. It becomes an emergency code when it is applied on a non-cumulative basis, shown as 1257L W1, 1257L M1 or 1257L X. Those suffixes mean your tax is worked out on each pay period in isolation rather than on your total pay so far this year, which is what can lead to an over or underpayment.
How do I claim back emergency tax on a pension?
If you have overpaid emergency tax on a flexible pension payment you can reclaim it now rather than waiting until the end of the tax year. Use HMRC form P55 if you took part of your pot and left the rest, P53Z if you emptied the pot and still have other taxable income, or P50Z if you emptied the pot and have no other taxable income. HMRC usually refunds within about 30 days. You can also let it settle automatically at year end, but claiming is faster.
Will emergency tax sort itself out?
For most employees, yes. Once HMRC receives your correct details, your code changes to a cumulative one and any overpayment is repaid through your wages, or refunded after the tax year via a P800 calculation. For a pension lump sum it does not sort itself out as quickly, so most people claim the overpaid tax back directly. Either way, checking the figure first tells you what to expect.

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Simon Chadwick
About the author
Simon Chadwick
Founder of Orbit Money

Simon is the founder of Orbit Money, a tool that helps people track subscriptions and recurring spend. He builds Orbit's free money calculators and writes about personal finance for UK and Australian readers.

More from Simon →
This tool is a guide, not tax advice.