P11D
A form employers must submit to HMRC to report the cash equivalent of benefits in kind and expenses provided to employees and directors that are not put through payroll. Common P11D items include company cars, private medical insurance, and interest-free loans above £10,000. The P11D value of benefits is added to your taxable income, meaning you pay income tax on it, while the employer pays Class 1A National Insurance on the same amount.
How it works
Employers must submit a P11D for each employee or director who received reportable benefits in kind shortly after the end of the tax year, and separately account for the Class 1A National Insurance owed on those benefits. Some employers now 'payroll' certain benefits instead, taxing them through your regular payslip throughout the year rather than reporting them after the fact on a P11D — if your employer does this, you won't receive a P11D for those specific benefits at all.
The value HMRC uses for a benefit isn't always simply what it cost the employer — company cars, for example, are valued using a formula based on list price and CO2 emissions rather than the car's actual purchase price, which is why two employees with similarly priced cars can have very different P11D values. You should check your P11D against your own understanding of the benefits you received, since errors do happen and an inflated P11D value increases both your tax bill and your employer's National Insurance liability.
P11D information affects your tax code for the following year, since HMRC uses it to estimate your ongoing benefit-in-kind position and adjust your PAYE deductions accordingly — a change in your benefits partway through the year, like giving back a company car, should be reported to HMRC promptly, rather than waiting for the next P11D, to avoid your tax code being based on stale information.
Example: Tax on a P11D benefit
Suppose your P11D shows £5,000 of benefits in kind for the year, such as private medical insurance, and you're a basic-rate taxpayer.
That £5,000 is added to your taxable income and taxed at your basic rate of 20%: £5,000 × 20% = £1,000 of extra income tax, usually collected through an adjustment to your tax code.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to do anything with my P11D myself?
Usually not directly — your employer submits it to HMRC and gives you a copy, and HMRC typically adjusts your tax code automatically, though you should check the figures and query anything that looks wrong.
What's the difference between a P11D and payrolled benefits?
A P11D reports benefits after the tax year has ended, with tax collected via a later tax code adjustment, while payrolled benefits are taxed through your payslip in real time during the year — employers can choose either method for most benefits.
Does my employer pay tax on my P11D benefits too?
Yes — alongside the income tax you pay on the benefit's value, your employer separately pays Class 1A National Insurance on the same amount, which is why some employers prefer cash alternatives to benefits in kind.
Related Terms
PAYE
Pay As You Earn — the system by which employers deduct income tax and National Insurance directly from employees' wages before paying them, and remit the deductions to HMRC on their behalf.
Taxable Income
The portion of your total income that is actually subject to income tax after deducting the Personal Allowance and any other reliefs or deductions you are entitled to.
Tax Code
A code issued by HMRC to your employer to tell them how much income tax to deduct from your pay each period.