Where does my first payslip go?

Your first payslip has a big number at the top and a smaller one at the bottom. Everything in between is the interesting part. The figures below are for the 2026/27 tax year, which runs from 6 April 2026 to 5 April 2027.

Gross pay

What you earned before anything is taken off: your hours times your hourly rate, plus any overtime or holiday pay.

Income tax

In 2026/27 you can earn £12,570 before paying any income tax. That is the standard Personal Allowance. Income from £12,571 to £50,270 is taxed at the basic rate of 20%. The bands are different if you live in Scotland.

Your payslip also shows your tax code. 1257L is the code used for most people with one job or pension: the L means you get the standard Personal Allowance. A code of BR means all your pay from that job is taxed at the basic rate, and it is usually used when someone has more than one job. A code ending in W1, M1 or X is an emergency code. You might get one when you start a new job and your employer does not have your previous income and tax details. If you have paid too much tax, you can get a refund.

National Insurance

You pay National Insurance if you are 16 or over and earn more than £242 a week from one job. It is how you build up the right to the State Pension and certain benefits. In 2026/27, employees pay 8% on earnings between £242 and £967 a week (£1,048 to £4,189 a month), and 2% on anything above that.

The thresholds are set per week and per month, not per year, so check them against what you earn in each pay period.

Pension

If you are aged between 22 and State Pension age, earn at least £10,000 a year and usually work in the UK, your employer must enrol you in a workplace pension automatically. The minimum is 8% of your qualifying earnings in total: at least 3% from your employer and 5% from you.

Under 22, you can usually still join if you want to, and your employer cannot refuse. Your employer only has to pay in if you earn more than £520 a month (£120 a week).

This money is for later. You usually cannot take money out of a workplace pension until after you are 55.

Net pay

What actually lands in your account. If it is lower than you expected, one of the three lines above is why, and now you know which.

The analyst habit

Keep every payslip. If you are working for an employer on 5 April, they must give you a P60 by 31 May, showing the tax you paid that tax year. Add up your payslips and check they match it. Being the person who checks the numbers is the entire job.