Tax credit renewal and pension

[LouiseBelchersPinkBunnyEars]

Hi. I have had a text from tax credits asking me to contact them as there is an issue with my renewal. I'm sure it must be to do with my pension contributions.

Just to check before I ring them- my pension contributions do not appear on my p60. Am I right in thinking that this means it's taxed at source and therfore all of it can be deducted from last years earnings?

How can I show this if they want documents?

Thank you for all your help

The figure you need to use for the year is the one on your P60

Your payslips will show the breakdown - get your March payslip and look at the year to date column

My pension payments do not show on my p60

Sorry, I know about my pension payments kn my payslip. I'm asking if I deduct my whole pension contributions from my earnings as pension doesn't appear on my p60 so is taxed at source (I think)

Your pension payments are irrelevant if they are taxed at source. The figure you need to put down as your income is the one found on your P60 unless you pay into a private (not employer) pension. Only then can you deduct your pension payments.

I'm asking if I deduct my whole pension contributions from my earnings

No, you don't deduct anything.

Say your gross pay is £500 per month and your pension is £25 per month your annual figures would be £6,000 gross pay and £300 pension.

Your P60 will show your annual earnings to be £5,700.

My p60 doesn't show this. My p60 shows exactly what I earned last year with no pension deductions.

Is is a company pension?

And have you compared your gross (before pension, tax and NI deductions) earnings from your payslip with your P60. The easiest way of doing this would be to get your March payslip and look at the taxable earnings to date figure and compare that with the P60 figure.

Hi. I don't pay tax or NI as don't warn enough.

The figure on my p60 is Same as gross earnings on my final payslip for tax year.

To test it Iooked at my previous payslip and too the gross figure. I then added the amount i earned the following payslip. That figure matches the new gross figure on that payslip with nothing deducted for pension.

I'm assuming this means none of my pension is deducted from my earnings?

Yes, the payments are shown kn my wageslip

So your payslip should read something like this. I've used fictional figures

PAYMENTS
Hours/Salary £100
TOTAL PAY £100

DEDUCTIONS
Pension £5.00
Tax £0.00
N.I. £0.00
TOTAL DEDUCTIONS £5.00

NET PAY £95.00

YEAR TO DATE
Taxable Gross Pay £95
Income Tax £0.00
Employer NI £0.00
Employee NI

It is your taxable gross pay that should show on your P60, the figure after pension has been deducted.

For most people your taxable gross pay would be your TOTAL PAY before tax and NI but after Pension, however as you don't pay tax that figure won't alter.

My pension contributions are not deducted from my gross pay on my payslips either. I've gone through and counted everything I earn and it matches the gross pay on p60 so pension contributions are deff not deducted from my gross pay

So does your weekly/monthly salary figure match exactly your Gross taxable pay figure? That is very unusual if so. Do you have your original paperwork from your pension? This should state whether your pension contributions are taxed at source or not.

So I have added my net pay up over all 13 of my wageslips. (What I actually recieve)

So net pay adds as £7000

My gross pay on my p60 is £7500

So there is a difference of £500. This is exactly the amount I have paid in pensions
(Figures not really just for example)

That is very odd and either means that your payroll has not set things up on their system correctly or they have for some reason set up a pension where (for those who do pay tax) pension contributions are not taxed at source.

This could be why tax credits want to speak to you as this is a very unusual method for a company pension.

When I speak to them is the pension taxed at source or not taxed at source? Every other year they haven't queried it, just this year so unsure what to say.

Thank you for all your help.

From what you have said it looks like the pension is not taxed at source, like a private pension would not be. Impossible for someone like me at the end of the internet to say for sure without seeing all the paperwork etc. Can you contact your employer and/or the pension company to clarify?

I dont want to ring tax credits and give false info so I just wanted advise to point me in the right direction so thank you for all your help.
I so have all my policy documents so will get them out and have a look. I'll also contact the person dealing with the pension and see if they can help.

I think I might have realised what the issue is. Because you don't actually earn enough to pay tax you don't get tax relief as such but it means your pension contributions are still included in the P60 amount rather than having been deducted. Am I making sense?

I think so
I do get tax relief on my pension tho

for example (as on pension account)

22 Feb 2021
Amount before tax relief- £48.10

Tax relief - £12.06

Total including tax relief £60.16

On that wage I paid £47.20 to pension

So i have had tax relief on pension but from my pension not company?

Sorry to jump on but I go through this every year and it takes months to literally get to speak to a processer and give them my actual salary minus my contributions as they don't show on my p60.

I cant afford the loss so far any longer. It normally takes until October to be finalised and corrected. I've tried to chase through 3 times now since April when I renewed online. I was told it had been done. It hasn't.

Please can I ask is the number you need to call the same as their main line or different? I really need to get this sorted. I'm currently down but around 400 a month as I've lost child maintenance too due to absent dad going awol