QuickCheckToolsTax code checker
Enter the tax code from your payslip to see what it means for the 2026/27 tax year: how much you can earn tax-free, what the letters mean, and whether it's worth checking with HMRC.
What the letters in a tax code mean
| Letters | What they mean |
|---|---|
| L | You get the standard tax-free Personal Allowance. |
| M | Marriage Allowance: your partner has transferred 10% of their allowance to you. |
| N | Marriage Allowance: you have transferred 10% of your allowance to your partner. |
| T | Your code includes other items HMRC reviews. |
| K | You have untaxed income or benefits worth more than your allowance, so an amount is added to your taxable pay. |
| 0T | No tax-free allowance from this job, or your employer doesn't have your details yet. |
| BR | All pay from this job taxed at the basic rate, 20%. |
| D0 | All pay from this job taxed at the higher rate, 40%. |
| D1 | All pay from this job taxed at the additional rate, 45%. |
| NT | No tax taken from this income. |
| S | Scottish tax rates apply. Scotland also has SBR (20%), SD0 (21%), SD1 (42%), SD2 (45%) and SD3 (48%). |
| C | Welsh tax rates apply (currently the same as England and Northern Ireland). |
| W1, M1, X, NONCUM | Emergency code: tax worked out on each payslip on its own. |
The number before the letter, multiplied by 10, is your tax-free pay for the year. A K code works the other way: the number times 10 is added to your taxable pay.
Questions
What is the tax code for 2026/27?
The standard tax code for 2026/27 is 1257L. It gives you a tax-free Personal Allowance of £12,570, about £1,048 a month. It is S1257L in Scotland and C1257L in Wales.
How do I know if my tax code is wrong?
Check the number against your situation. A code lower than 1257L means HMRC has reduced your tax-free pay, usually for company benefits, untaxed income or tax owed. An emergency code (ending W1, M1 or X), 0T or BR on your only job usually means you are paying too much tax. You can see how your code was worked out in your HMRC personal tax account.
What does the number in my tax code mean?
Multiply it by 10 to get your tax-free pay for the year. 1257L means £12,570; 1100L means £11,000.
Will I get money back if my tax code was wrong?
Usually, yes. Once HMRC corrects your code, overpaid tax is normally refunded through your pay, or after the end of the tax year.
What is an emergency tax code?
A temporary code, such as 1257L W1 or 1257L M1, used when your employer doesn't have your details. Tax is worked out on each payslip on its own rather than on your total pay for the year, which can mean paying too much until it is corrected.
Is this tax code checker free?
Yes. It runs in your browser and nothing you enter is sent or stored. It explains what your code means for the 2026/27 tax year using HMRC's published figures. It is general guidance, not personal tax advice.
Figures from HMRC's rates and thresholds for 2026/27. General guidance only, not personal tax advice.