The two simple taxman checks that could get you thousands of pounds

TAX-PAYERS are strapped for cash right now thanks to recent hikes taking a whack at their wallets.

But two simple checks could help you get thousands of pounds back from the taxman.

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Most consumer’s pockets are taking a battering lately, with bills stacking up on the doorstep as everything from energy to food costs rise.

Plus, plenty saw less in their pay packets after a hike in National Insurance took a bigger cut of workers’ wages last month.

But you could help put cash back into your wallet with thousands of pounds that you may be owed from HMRC.

You might be eligible for a tax refund, or you could claim cash from a tax rebate that’s redeemable from the past few years.

Here’s what to look out for if you’re in need of the cash boost.

Check for a refund

You may be OWED money from the taxman if you’ve overpaid on tax.

It might be after you’ve moved jobs and not given your new workplace your P45 or filled in a starter checklist form.

The taxman can get confused when you move from one job to another, or move from PAYE to being self-employed so it’s important to make sure all your details are up to date.

Check your payslip or P800 to make sure your tax code is right.

The letters and numbers all mean different things, and they determine how much you’re supposed to pay.

That means if they’re wrong you could be paying too much – and due it back.

You might also be under paying if it’s the wrong code, which means you owe the taxman money, which could be harder to pull together in one lump sum during the cost of living crisis.

Your tax code, as well as the amount you’ve paid in tax, your National Insurance contributions or any student loans, will be listed on your pay slip so it should be easy to monitor this each month.

You have four years from the end of the tax year in which the overpayment happened to claim a refund.

And in that time you could claim over £3,000 on average, according to RIFT Tax Refunds.

If you think you have overpaid tax through PAYE in the current tax year, tell HMRC before it ends – this year has only just started so you have until April 5, 2023.

You can claim whatever you think you may be owed on the government website.

Check for a rebate

As well as a refund on what the taxman owes you, you should also check if you are due a hefty rebate.

Millions could get the separate refund because of the coronavirus pandemic, for example.

Those who worked from home during the 2020/21 and 2021/22 tax years could get up to £250 for the effort.

That’s because the refund is worth £125 per year.

You claim tax relief on £6 per week for the tax year.

If you are a basic rate tax payer, the relief is worth 20%, which means that you’ll get £1.20 per week.

Over the course of the year, this adds up to £62.40, for anyone earning between £12,500 and £50,000.

If you pay higher rate tax your relief will be worth 40% or £2.40 per week.

This adds up to £124.80 for the year and is available to anyone who earns more than £50,000 per year.

But you can get the rebate even if you were only asked to work from home one day during that whole year.

And just the same as any cash you may be owed for overpaying tax, HMRC will accept backdated claims for up to four years so still you have time to cash-in on the refund.

HMRC has a handy online tool to help you submit a claim.

This post first appeared on thesun.co.uk