Claiming Tax Refunds on Pension Payments

When you access your pension, HMRC often deducts too much tax because your pension provider doesn't have complete information about your total income for the year. Fortunately, you can claim this overpaid tax back using specific HMRC forms designed for different pension scenarios. The form you need...

Why pension payments are often overtaxed

Your pension provider must deduct tax when you take money from your pension, but they often don't have the full picture of your income for the tax year (6 April to 5 April). This means they may apply an emergency tax code or assume you'll receive similar pension payments throughout the year, resulting in you paying more tax than you actually owe.

Form P55: Claiming back tax on flexible pension withdrawals

Use form P55 if you've made a flexible withdrawal from your pension but haven't emptied your pension pot completely, and you meet all these conditions:

You've flexibly accessed your pension pot but not emptied it
You won't be taking regular or flexible payments before the end of the tax year
Your pension provider is unable to refund the tax themselves

You cannot use this form if you've emptied your entire pension pot. In that case, you'll need form P53Z or P50Z instead (see below).

What information you'll need for form P55

For the tax year you're claiming for, you'll need to provide estimated figures for all your expected income, including:

Employment income and taxable benefits from your employer
Any UK pension income
Pension flexibility lump sum payments
Self-employment profits
Taxed and untaxed interest on UK savings and investments
Taxable state benefits (such as Employment and Support Allowance, Carer's Allowance, Incapacity Benefit, Jobseeker's Allowance, State Pension)
Dividend income from UK companies
Other income including property, trusts, and commissions
Gift Aid payments

Use whole numbers rounded down to the nearest pound. If you don't have final figures, you can provide estimates. HMRC will check at the end of the tax year and contact you if the amount is different, so keep all paperwork relating to your claim until these checks are complete.

If you complete Self Assessment tax returns

If you fill in a tax return, don't include estimated Self Assessment income in your P55 claim unless you specifically want HMRC to include it when calculating your repayment. You'll still need to pay any balancing payments and payments on account when due, though you can ask HMRC to use your repayment to reduce your payments on account. Remember to include any repayment you receive on your next Self Assessment tax return.

Form P53Z: Claiming back tax when you've emptied your pension

Use form P53Z if you've completely emptied your pension pot through flexible access, or if you've received a serious ill health lump sum and want to reclaim overpaid tax during the same tax year.

This form is specifically for situations where you've flexibly accessed all of your pension and received a P45 from your pension provider. You'll need parts 2 and 3 of your P45 from your pension payments — HMRC cannot process your claim without them.

Don't use this form if you've taken a trivial commutation (taking all of your pension as cash in one go) or a small pension lump sum. For those situations, use form P53 instead.

What information you'll need for form P53Z

You'll need the same types of information as for form P55, including:

Your National Insurance number
Your employer PAYE reference number (if you have it)
Parts 2 and 3 of your P45
Details of all expected income for the tax year, including pensions from former employers, public service pensions, forces pensions, personal pension annuities, State Pension, and any income from property, trusts, commissions, tips, foreign income, or UK life insurance policy profits
Self-employment profits for the current tax year (if any)

Form P50Z: Claiming back tax when you've stopped working

Use form P50Z if you've emptied your pension pot through flexible access and you've also stopped work completely. All of the following must apply:

You've stopped work and don't expect to return to work
You've flexibly accessed your whole pension and have a P45 from your pension provider
You've either retired permanently and aren't receiving a pension from your previous employer, or you've returned to full-time study and aren't receiving any income

Important timing and eligibility rules

Wait until four weeks have passed since you stopped work or finished your pension before sending this form.

Don't complete form P50Z if:

You're unemployed but expect to start a new job within four weeks (give your new employer parts 2 and 3 of your P45 and they'll make any repayment through your salary)
Your pension flexibility payment hasn't emptied your pension pot (use form P55 instead)
You've received a serious ill health lump sum or have flexibly accessed all your pension and have other income (use form P53Z instead)
You've had a one-off lump sum pension payment through trivial commutation or small pots (use form P53 instead)

You also cannot use this form if you're claiming any of these taxable benefits:

Jobseeker's Allowance
Taxable Incapacity Benefit (this is taxable if paid for more than 28 weeks)
Contribution-based Employment and Support Allowance
Carer's Allowance

If you're claiming any of these benefits, wait until after 5 April (the end of the tax year) or when your claim ends, whichever is sooner. If sooner, Jobcentre Plus will send you a repayment.

Form P53: Claiming back tax on small pension lump sums

Use form P53 if you've taken:

All of your pension as cash in one payment (known as trivial commutation of a pension fund)
A small pension as a lump sum

Don't use this form if you've flexibly accessed your pension pot and emptied it, or if you've received a serious ill health lump sum. In those cases, use form P53Z instead.

The information you'll need for form P53 is identical to what's required for form P53Z, including your National Insurance number, PAYE reference, P45 details, and information about all your expected income for the tax year.

How to make your claim

All four forms can be completed online, which is the quickest method. You'll need to sign in to HMRC's online services, or you can create sign-in details if you don't already have them.

If you prefer not to sign in, you can use HMRC's interactive guidance to fill in the form online, then print, sign, and post it. Alternatively, you can download a PDF version of the form, complete it by hand, and post it to HMRC. The postal address is provided at the end of each form.

Before you start any online form, gather all your information together — you cannot save your progress partway through.

What happens after you submit your claim

Once HMRC receives your completed claim, they'll confirm whether you're owed a refund or contact you if they need more information. It may take 14 days to get a reply, and you shouldn't contact HMRC during that period to check on progress.

For forms P53, P53Z, and P50Z, HMRC will send you a payable order (not a Bacs payment). This can be sent to your home address or to a nominee's address. The payable order can only be paid into an account held in your name or your nominee's name.

For form P55, HMRC will make repayments by Faster Payments into a bank account held in your name or your nominee's name.

If you don't have a bank or building society account, you can provide the name and address of someone who does (your nominee), so HMRC can make the payment to them.

At the end of the tax year, HMRC will check to ensure they've refunded the correct amount and will contact you if the figure is different.

Non-UK residents

If you're not a UK resident for tax purposes, you don't need to use forms P50Z or P55. Check the guidance on how to make a claim under a double taxation agreement instead.

Sources

This article provides general guidance based on current HMRC rules. For advice specific to your situation, speak to your accountant.