Tax codes one by one
BR tax code
A code with no number: the whole of this pay is taxed at the basic rate, with no allowance at all.
BR takes more over the year
£1,800.00
| 1257L | BR | |
|---|---|---|
| Tax-free amount | £12,570 | none |
| Tax, first month | £0.00 | £150.00 |
| Tax over the year | £0.00 | £1,800.00 |
| Take-home after tax | £9,000 | £7,200 |
Same pay every month, HMRC’s cumulative method, Income Tax only (no National Insurance).
BR stands for basic rate. An employer or pension provider using BR gives you no tax-free pay at all and takes 20% from every pound you earn there, from the first pound to the last. It is the code GOV.UK links to a second job or a second pension: your £12,570 Personal Allowance for 2026 to 2027 is already used by your main job, so this source starts taxing straight away. A second job paying £9,000 a year loses £1,800.00 to Income Tax under BR, against £0.00 if the same pay carried 1257L. BR is right when the main job uses the whole allowance and keeps you below the higher rate threshold of £50,270. It is wrong when the BR job is now your only income, for instance after the main job ended. In Scotland the same code is written SBR and in Wales CBR, both at 20%. You correct it through your HMRC online account, not through your employer.
Tax on a second job with BR, D0 or D1
With BR, over the year
£1,800.00
| BR (20%) | £1,800.00 |
| D0 (40%) | £3,600.00 |
| D1 (45%) | £4,050.00 |
| With 0T | £1,800.00 |
Rules read on HMRC’s texts by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Method
How BR works on a payslip
A BR code has no number, so the payroll has no free pay to subtract. HMRC's specification for PAYE tax routines says the whole of the pay to date is rounded down to the pound and charged at the basic rate, whatever its size. With £750 paid in a month, the deduction is £150.00; with £1,500, it is £300.00. The rate never climbs to 40%, even if the second job pays a lot: if your combined income crosses into the higher band, HMRC would use D0 instead.
The employer guidance on tax codes lists BR as the usual code for a second job or a pension. That is why it shows up on the payslip of a weekend job, an evening shift or a small occupational pension paid next to a salary.
| Yearly pay on the BR job | Tax in month 1 | Tax over the year with BR | Same pay with 1257L |
|---|---|---|---|
| £4,000 | £66.60 | £799.80 | £0.00 |
| £9,000 | £150.00 | £1,800.00 | £0.00 |
| £15,000 | £250.00 | £3,000.00 | £484.00 |
| £25,000 | £416.60 | £4,999.80 | £2,484.00 |
When BR is the right code
BR fits when three things are true. Your main job or pension carries the Personal Allowance and uses all of it. Your total income stays under £50,270, the point where the basic rate band ends for most people. And the second source is paid through PAYE. In that case the 20% taken on the second job matches the tax you actually owe on that income, and the year closes with no surprise.
New employers also reach BR through the starter checklist. Statement A gives the standard allowance, statement B gives it on a week 1 or month 1 basis, and statement C, for people who already have a job or receive a pension, gives BR. The employer keeps that code until HMRC sends a new one, which HMRC aims to do within 15 working days of a change it accepts.
Codes for two jobs
Expected codes
1257L + BR
| Tax due for the year | £5,286.00 |
| Second job with 1257L by mistake | £0.00 |
| Second job with its expected code | £1,800.00 |
When BR is the wrong code
The common mistake is BR left on what has become your only job. Picture someone who had a full-time post and a Saturday job, then left the full-time post in the summer. If the Saturday job still runs BR, none of the allowance is being used anywhere, and every payslip overpays. The same thing happens when a retired person's main pension stops or is transferred and the remaining one stays on BR.
BR is also wrong in the opposite direction. If the main salary already reaches the higher rate band, 20% on the second job is too little and the gap turns into an underpayment that HMRC collects later. That case calls for D0 at 40%. The second job page compares the codes for two incomes side by side.
To fix either case, sign in to your HMRC online account, check that each employment and pension is listed with the right estimated pay, and update anything missing. Your employer keeps applying the code it was given until HMRC sends a new one, so the change has to start with your record. If the overpayment has already happened, the refund page explains how it comes back.
SBR and CBR: the same idea in Scotland and Wales
If your main home is in Scotland, the code reads SBR and charges the Scottish basic rate of 20%, not the starter rate of 19%. If you live in Wales it reads CBR, charging the Welsh basic rate of 20%. The letter in front tells the payroll which set of rates applies; the logic of no allowance and one flat rate stays the same. The Scottish codes page shows the SD codes that replace D0 and D1 north of the border.