Emergency tax calculator
The emergency tax code in the 2024/25 tax year is 1257L/M1. This tax code will normally be applied if your pension provider hasn’t received a valid P45, or your personal tax code confirmation from HMRC. Because of this, an emergency tax code will usually be applied to your first taxable pension withdrawal and corrected afterwards.
This emergency tax calculator will help you to work out how much tax might be deducted from your pension withdrawals if an emergency tax code is used. Just confirm how you plan to make your pension withdrawal (through drawdown or as an UFPLS), and the value.
Remember with drawdown, any tax-free cash is taken when you first move into drawdown and the remaining income withdrawals are taxable. With an UFPLS payment, 25% of the withdrawal will normally be tax free, and the rest taxable.
How are pension withdrawals taxed?
Download our factsheet to find out:
- How emergency tax works
- How tax could be deducted
- How to claim back overpaid tax
Your details
Important information - This calculator provides you with an indication of the tax which might be deducted if an emergency tax code is used for a payment made in the 2024/25 tax year based on the latest information provided by HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) as at 6 April 2024. The tax deducted using an emergency tax code does not indicate the tax you may owe due to the payment. The actual tax deducted from any payment will depend on the tax code specified by HMRC and the value of your payment.
The calculations assume that 25% of your UFPLS payment will be paid tax free, but if you don't have sufficient lump sum allowance, or lump sum and death benefit allowance, remaining this percentage will be lower. In some circumstances, you might not be able to withdraw a lump sum without moving into drawdown first. The calculator does not confirm that such a lump sum is available to you, nor does it consider any implications of taking this lump sum, for example any impact on capital gains tax, inheritance tax or on any means tested benefits.
Once HMRC has confirmed your tax code to your pension provider future payments should be taxed using this code. Use our pension income tax calculator to estimate how much tax might be deducted from pension withdrawals using the standard personal allowance and respective income tax bands.
Money in a pension cannot normally be accessed until age 55 (rising to 57 from 2028). What you do with your pension is an important decision. Make sure you understand your options and check they are suitable for your circumstances. The Government's free Pension Wise service can help. It provides impartial guidance online or by phone - more on Pension Wise.
The information on our website isn’t personal advice. Please seek advice if you’re unsure about the right course of action for your circumstances.