Tax on two jobs · 2026/27 tax year
Main job under £12,570? Split your allowance between jobs
Yes, you can split your Personal Allowance between two jobs if your main job pays less than £12,570. Contact HMRC to ask. In GOV.UK's own example, jobs paying £8,000 and £7,000 get codes giving £8,000 and £4,570 tax-free, so the second job pays £486 a year instead of £1,400 on BR. Without the split you pay £914 too much during the year and get it back only after it ends.
Second job tax rules checked against GOV.UK on .
Allowance to share
£12,570
one per person per year
Split codes, GOV.UK example
800L + 457L
£8,000 and £7,000 jobs
Tax with split
£486
vs £1,400 on BR
Paid too much without it
£914
refunded after the year ends
BR compared with a split allowance, 2026/27
The main job keeps enough allowance to cover its pay, and the second job gets the rest. Tax a year under each set of codes.
| Main job pay | Second job pay | Split codes | Tax on 1257L + BR | Tax with split | Taken too much on BR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| £8,000 | £7,000 | 800L + 457L | £1,400 | £486 | £914 |
| £10,000 | £6,000 | 1000L + 257L | £1,200 | £686 | £514 |
| £11,000 | £9,000 | 1100L + 157L | £1,800 | £1,486 | £314 |
| £12,000 | £12,000 | 1200L + 57L | £2,400 | £2,286 | £114 |
How the split works
The number in each code is the tax-free pay at that job with the last digit dropped. A job paying £8,000 needs £8,000 of allowance, code 800L, which leaves £4,570 for the other job, code 457L. Your total tax-free pay is still £12,570.
How to ask HMRC
GOV.UK says to contact HMRC to check if your Personal Allowance can be split between your jobs. Sign in to your Personal Tax Account or the HMRC app, check both jobs are listed with the right pay, or call the Income Tax helpline on 0300 200 3300 (Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm).
When not to split
GOV.UK warns that if your pay varies or is irregular, a split can mean you do not pay the right amount of tax. If your main job pay rises past its share, you could owe tax at the end of the year. A zero-hours or seasonal job is often better left on BR.
If you do nothing
The overpaid tax is not lost. GOV.UK says HMRC usually sends a P800 after the tax year ends showing you are due a refund. The split just gets the money into your pay during the year.
Which job gets the allowance
GOV.UK says the allowance usually goes to the job that pays you the most. If your second job pays more than your main one, HMRC may swap the codes instead of splitting them.
Guides and definitions
- Why is my tax code wrong? What it means and how to fix it (Guide)
- Emergency tax code (An emergency tax code, marked W1, M1 or X, taxes each payday on its own, as if you were paid that amount every period of the year.)
- Marginal tax rate (Your marginal tax rate is the share of your next pound or dollar of income that goes in tax and deductions.)
- P11D (A P11D is the form UK employers send HMRC by 6 July to report each employee's taxable benefits and expenses that were not taxed through payroll.)
- P60 (A P60 is the yearly summary of your pay and tax from one employer, due by 31 May if you work there on 5 April.)
- Personal Allowance (The Personal Allowance is the income you can earn each UK tax year before Income Tax starts: £12,570 for 2026/27.)
Other second job situations
- Second job on BR (basic rate) (Main job under £50,270: every pound of the second job taxed at 20%)
- Second job at 40% (D0) (When a second job takes you over £50,270)
- National Insurance on two jobs (Each job has its own NI threshold)
- Self-employed side income (The £1,000 trading allowance and Self Assessment)
Second job tax: the overview · BR tax code explained · D0 tax code explained · Second job tax calculator · See whether splitting your allowance helps
Common questions
Can I split my personal allowance between two jobs?
Yes, if the job with the allowance pays less than £12,570. GOV.UK says to contact HMRC to check if it can be split. You still get £12,570 in total; it is just shared between the two codes so each job gives some tax-free pay.
How much tax will I save by splitting my allowance?
Nothing over the whole year, but less is taken during it. With jobs paying £8,000 and £7,000, BR takes £1,400 and a split takes £486, which is the right amount. Without it you wait for a £914 refund.
What tax codes will I get if my allowance is split?
Two codes ending in L whose numbers add up to about 1257. For jobs paying £10,000 and £6,000 that would be 1000L and 257L. The exact numbers are set by HMRC.
Is splitting the allowance a good idea with irregular hours?
Often not. GOV.UK warns that with varying or irregular pay a split can mean you do not pay the right tax. If one job pays more than its share, you owe tax later; if less, you still wait for a refund.
I have two part-time jobs under £12,570 each. Do I pay tax?
Only if together they pay more than £12,570. Two jobs of £12,000 each total £24,000, so tax is £2,286. With BR on the second job, £2,400 is taken, £114 too much.
Sources and assumptions
- Income Tax for the 2026/27 tax year (6 April 2026 to 5 April 2027), with the same pay every month from both jobs for the whole year.
- England, Wales and Northern Ireland rates unless a table says Scotland. The main job is on 1257L with the standard £12,570 allowance and pay under £100,000.
- Employee National Insurance is worked out on each job's monthly pay with HMRC's monthly thresholds (£1,048 and £4,189), so yearly totals can differ by a few pence from an annual sum.
- Split codes give the main job enough allowance to cover its pay (rounded up to £10) and the second job the rest, as in GOV.UK's example. HMRC sets the actual codes.
- GOV.UK: How tax works if you have more than one job
- GOV.UK: Tax codes, what your tax code means
- GOV.UK: Income Tax rates and Personal Allowances
- GOV.UK: If you think your tax code is wrong
- GOV.UK: Income Tax enquiries (HMRC contact)
These are estimates to help you understand tax on more than one job, not tax advice. HMRC and your employers' payroll decide what you actually pay.