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Original poster

HMRC PAYE What does this mean: "Untaxed interest on savings and investments"

26 replies

Monmonga · 09/02/2020 18:44

Hello, I am not very savvy about tax so please bear with me. Have received an email from HMRC that my taxcode has changed. Logged in and it appears now to be 1236L instead of the earlier 1250L. The difference seems to come with the line "Untaxed interest on savings and investments", £136. Does anyone know what this means? I have very little savings, less than 5k, some of it on an ISA but not all.
Thank you!

OP posts:
celtiethree · 09/02/2020 18:57

It’s look like you didn’t pay some tax on interest and they are now recovering from your tax code rather then asking you to pay. The amount is not large. In 1250l you earn £12500 before being taxed, 1236l means you can earn £12360 before bring taxed. Did you earn approx £140 interest (outside an isa) ? With this change you’ll pay approx £28 extra over the year. I think

Original poster
Monmonga · 09/02/2020 19:35

@celtiethree Thank you for your reply. I am not sure, I have some money on a savings account (less than 2k) at a standard UK bank. Would that be taxable?
Something has just popped into my mind though, I have some further small amount of savings in an EU country, it is from about 10 years ago so not recently earned but wondering if now with Brexit I maybe have to start paying tax on that if the UK?
Do you think I can get further info on this from HMRC?

OP posts:
celtiethree · 09/02/2020 19:51

If your savings are low then you shouldn’t actually be paying tax as what you earn should fall within the personal savings allowance which should be tax free. See the link from money saving expert.

It may be the overseas savings you could contact HMRC and they should be able to tell you. It’s v common for HMRC to get it wrong. Are you a higher rate tax payer? If yes then when you submit your self assessment you’d get the money back if there was a miscalculation.

www.moneysavingexpert.com/savings/personal-savings-allowance/

coconuttelegraph · 09/02/2020 19:55

Do you think I can get further info on this from HMRC?

Of course you can ask them to explain your tax code, it's a transparent system, they aren't trying to hide anythng, or is that not what you mean?

Original poster
Monmonga · 09/02/2020 19:58

Thank you so much for this! I am a standard tax payer and will definitely not be earning more than £1,000 in interest (including the overseas savings) so will contact HMRC tomorrow.
Thanks again for your help!

OP posts:
Original poster
Monmonga · 09/02/2020 20:00

@coconuttelegraph Yes, sorry, I think what I meant was I didn't know how to query this with HMRC. 😊

OP posts:
Happygirl79 · 09/02/2020 20:00

Are you receiving dividends from shares?

coconuttelegraph · 09/02/2020 20:11

It couldn't be easier, really, just ring up and ask them. That's not meant to be snippy, they have helplines for exactly that reason, they'd be bored if no one ever called them Grin

Original poster
Monmonga · 09/02/2020 21:13

@Happygirl79 No, no dividends. In fact I am really not money-savvy enough and just have very low-key financial affairs. Wish I knew about all these things!

@coconuttelegraph I shall keep them entertained with my phonecall tomorrow! 😂
Was hoping for the option of an online query but doesn't seem to be the case.

Thank you all for the responses!

OP posts:
celtiethree · 09/02/2020 21:29

You can do it online but you’d need to set up a personal tax account!! Probably easiest to try and call them first.

FinallyHere · 09/02/2020 22:06

Do give them a ring, especially if you can before 10am weekdays. I have often managed to get straight through.

The staff on their helpline are really very knowledgable and v v helpful.

Original poster
Monmonga · 09/02/2020 22:31

Thank you all, you have really put me at ease as I went into full on anxiety mode when the email arrived! Hoping to be able to get this sorted tomorrow. 🤞

OP posts:
BarbaraofSeville · 10/02/2020 04:21

If you feel you don't understand finances, a good thing would be to sign up for the moneysavingexpert weekly newsletter, for ongoing tips on all aspects of personal finance. You can also look into all the linked articles where they seem interesting or relevant. Over time you'll pick up all sorts of useful stuff.

Original poster
Monmonga · 10/02/2020 07:44

Thank you @BarbaraofSeville, will definitely sign up!

OP posts:
happychatty · 10/02/2020 07:51

Are you sure it's a legit email? I thought they usually only communicated by post. Give them a call to double check.

mintbiscuit · 10/02/2020 08:03

Email?? Agree with PP that they normally send via letter, not email.

BarbaraofSeville · 10/02/2020 08:14

HMRC do use email. I got one the other day. It was addressed to me personally and told me to look in my account because my tax code had changed.

I logged in, hoping they were going to tell me it had gone up because I had been behind with my company car tax because my employer is useless at these things and I had paid back the arrears and would start to see a bit less tax taken off my salary.

But sadly no, it was to tell me I was still behind and I could look forward to another year of paying extra tax to catch up with underpaid tax.

BarbaraofSeville · 10/02/2020 08:15

Logged in separately, not using any email links I should add.

That's the trick - never click on a link in an email, but go to the website, check it is the right one, and log in on there.

celtiethree · 10/02/2020 08:19

HMRC do send emails. I receive emails and they are legitimate. Protect yourself though by going into the HMRC website to find the right number to call.

Original poster
Monmonga · 10/02/2020 08:35

Yes, I opted for paperless so comms comes by email. There was no link in the email or any further info, just advising to log in via Government Gateway which I did. I think it is legitimate as it did indeed show a change of my tax code.

OP posts:
ToEarlyForDecorations · 10/02/2020 08:41

I logged in via Government Gateway to check what the e-mail HMRC sent to me meant.

While I was there, a dialog box popped up. I had a very useful, legitimate conversation with an HMRC employee about what had happened to my tax code. During which, they changed my tax code back to what it had been last September.

My tax free allowance had been reduced because of interest paid elsewhere which I do not receive. (It's complicated.)

Original poster
Monmonga · 10/02/2020 10:09

Hi all, just in case anyone is on tenterhooks, I have spoken to HMRC and this is actually an error, which they have now hopefully corrected.

@ToEarlyForDecorations I wonder why I can't do the online chat, have gone into personal tax account and logged in via Government Gateway, but it then takes me back into the exact same page where I checked my tax code. No option for online chat or anything. Anyway, will check back next week to make sure it is corrected. Thanks all for all the advice!

OP posts:
ToEarlyForDecorations · 10/02/2020 10:35

@Monmonga the online chat dialog box just popped up when I was on a tax code screen and I put my name in. I was advised I was number 4 in the queue. I got through the queue quickly and after answering their security questions we were able to enter a discussion. I was surprised and impressed that it was resolved immediately without a great long protracted saga.

Original poster
Monmonga · 10/02/2020 10:59

Maybe you are a more trusted citizen than I am! 😂

OP posts:
coconuttelegraph · 10/02/2020 11:14

Good result, I knew they were sitting there waiting for you to ring so they could help you Grin