Your payslip shows one simple thing: how your gross pay becomes your take-home pay. For most employees in the UK, the main deductions are Income Tax, employee National Insurance, workplace pension contributions and sometimes student loan repayments.
If a deduction looks unfamiliar, it is usually linked to your tax code, pension setup, pay frequency, benefits through work or a payroll adjustment. The label on the payslip matters, because not every deduction is a tax.
What deductions should be on a UK payslip?
Most UK payslips include gross pay, then deductions, then net pay. The standard deductions are usually Income Tax and employee National Insurance. Many payslips also show workplace pension contributions, and some show student loan repayments.
Gross pay: your pay before deductions
Income Tax: tax taken through PAYE
National Insurance: employee NI on earnings above the threshold
Pension: your workplace pension contribution, if you are enrolled
Student loan: repayment if your income is above your plan threshold
Net pay: what you actually receive after deductions
You may also see items such as salary sacrifice, childcare vouchers from older schemes, cycle-to-work deductions, union fees, charitable giving, attachment of earnings orders or adjustments from an earlier payroll run.
How is Income Tax worked out on a payslip?
Income Tax is usually calculated through PAYE using your tax code and taxable pay. In 2026/27, the standard Personal Allowance is £12,570 a year. Basic-rate tax is 20%, higher-rate tax is 40% and additional-rate tax is 45%.
For most people, the first £12,570 of annual taxable income is covered by the Personal Allowance. After that, income is normally taxed at 20% up to the basic-rate limit of £37,700, then 40% up to £125,140, then 45% above that.
Your payslip does not always show the full annual calculation in one place. Payroll usually spreads tax across the year, so the amount deducted this month depends on what you have earned so far in the tax year, your tax code and whether you are paid monthly or weekly.
Why your tax deduction can change from month to month
A changing tax deduction does not always mean something is wrong. Overtime, bonuses, unpaid leave, a new tax code or starting a job part-way through the tax year can all change the PAYE calculation.
If you earn above £100,000, your Personal Allowance starts to reduce. That can make tax deductions rise faster than you expect. We explain that in more detail in our guide to the £100k tax trap.
How is National Insurance shown on a payslip?
Employee National Insurance is separate from Income Tax. In 2026/27, employees usually pay 8% on earnings between £12,570 and £50,270, and 2% on earnings above £50,270.
National Insurance is often shown as 'NI' on your payslip. Unlike Income Tax, it is usually calculated for each pay period rather than on a fully cumulative annual basis. That means a one-off bonus can change NI for that specific month even if your annual salary has not changed.
Your NI amount can also depend on your NI category letter. That letter affects how payroll applies the rules. The category letter is often shown somewhere near your tax code or employee details.
Why is my pension deducted from my pay?
If you are in a workplace pension, your own contribution is usually deducted through payroll. This lowers your take-home pay, but it means money is being paid into your pension scheme for you, often alongside an employer contribution.
The important detail is how the pension is taken. Some schemes use salary sacrifice, some use net pay arrangements and some use relief at source. These methods can change both your payslip wording and the way tax relief appears.
Salary sacrifice: your contractual salary is reduced before tax and NI are worked out
Net pay arrangement: pension is deducted before Income Tax but after NI
Relief at source: pension is usually taken after tax, with tax relief added inside the pension
Because of this, two employees making similar pension contributions can see different payslip lines. If you want a deeper breakdown, see our guide on how pension contributions affect Income Tax.
When do student loan deductions appear on a payslip?
Student loan deductions appear when your earnings go above the threshold for your plan and payroll has been told to start deductions. In 2026/27, the annual thresholds are £26,900 for Plan 1, £29,385 for Plan 2, £33,795 for Plan 4, £25,000 for Plan 5 and £21,000 for Postgraduate loans.
Repayments are usually 9% of income above the threshold for Plan 1, Plan 2, Plan 4 and Plan 5. Postgraduate loan deductions are usually 6% of income above £21,000. These are separate from tax and NI, so they reduce take-home pay further.
If you are not sure why a student loan deduction has started, the first step is usually checking which plan you are on and whether payroll has the right information. Different plans can produce different deductions on the same salary.
Why is my take-home pay lower than my salary suggests?
Your salary figure is usually gross annual pay, not what arrives in your bank account. Your take-home pay is lower because tax, National Insurance and any other deductions are taken before you are paid.
It can also be lower than expected because of pension contributions, student loans, salary sacrifice arrangements or taxable benefits. A bonus can make this feel more noticeable, because extra pay may be taxed and charged to NI at higher marginal rates in that pay period.
This is why headline salary comparisons can be misleading. Two jobs with the same salary can produce different monthly net pay if one includes a bigger pension contribution, a different sacrifice scheme or a student loan deduction.
What do common payslip terms mean?
Most payslip jargon is payroll shorthand. Once you know the common labels, it becomes much easier to read.
PAYE: Pay As You Earn, the system used to collect Income Tax through payroll
Tax code: code used by payroll to apply your tax-free allowance and adjustments
Taxable pay: the part of your pay that tax is worked out on
NIable pay: the part of your pay that NI is worked out on
YTD: year to date, the total so far in the tax year
Gross pay: pay before deductions
Net pay: pay after deductions
Salary sacrifice: a reduction to salary in exchange for a benefit, often pension contributions
How can I check if my payslip deductions are correct?
Start by checking the basics: your gross pay, tax code, pension deduction, student loan plan and the net pay figure. Then compare the current payslip with the previous one to see what changed. A difference often comes from overtime, bonus pay, unpaid leave or a tax code update.
It also helps to separate deductions into taxes, pension and other payroll items. If the tax or NI looks high, it may still be correct for that pay period. If the issue is your student loan plan or pension method, the label on the payslip usually gives the clue.
A salary calculator can help you sense-check the numbers, especially if you want to compare gross pay with expected take-home. It is also useful when you are comparing two job offers with different pension setups or loan deductions.
What should you do if a payslip deduction looks wrong?
The practical answer is to identify the deduction first, then ask payroll or HR for the basis of the calculation. Payslip issues are often administrative rather than complex tax problems, such as the wrong student loan plan, a new tax code not yet applied or a one-off payroll correction.
If the deduction is tax-related, your tax code and year-to-date figures are usually the key details. If it is pension-related, the scheme type matters. If it is a student loan deduction, the plan type matters. The more specific you are, the easier it is for payroll to explain what happened.
This article is general information, not regulated financial advice. Individual payroll situations can vary, especially where benefits, irregular pay or multiple jobs are involved.