Probably! Many students who have undertaken some kind of paid work whilst studying are unaware that they are eligible for a student tax refund.
This guide will take a quick look at how much you could be eligible to claim back and how to go about doing so. For example, did you know that you can claim back overpaid tax from as early as 2008 in the year 2014!
Why students commonly overpay tax
This is why it happens.. students that go on a placement year or work part-time during university often do so over two tax years.
Since most students do not end up earning over the tax-free personal allowance within a single tax year (April – April), and coupled with the fact that employer’s often put them on the wrong or ‘emergency’ tax code, students tend to pay more tax than they should be without even knowing it.
If you have left work
To start with your application for a student tax refund you need to get a P45 from your previous employer (they have to supply you with one by law).
Then you will need to work out whether you have paid too much tax (use our tax calculator here). When you are sure that you have overpaid then you need to download a P50 form. Along with this you will need to send Part 2 and Part 3 of your P45 to HMRC and keep Part 1 as a personal copy.
If you find it too confusing, have lost or don’t have any of the forms, or simply don’t have the time or patience, then we can do everything for you via our new student tax back service.
If you are still working
Simply contact HMRC and tell them of your situation. They will advise you from there to make sure that you are not paying too much tax.