Pay employers' PAYE
Reference numbers for early and late payments
You need to add 4 extra numbers to your 13-character accounts office reference number if you’re making an early or late payment:
- by Direct Debit
- by making an online or telephone bank transfer
- by cheque through the post
You need to update the reference number each time you make an early or late payment.
If you’re paying through the online service, it will work out the numbers for you.
How to work out the extra numbers
Each month and quarter of the tax year is given a number. The 4 numbers you add to your 13-character accounts office reference number depend on whether you pay:
- monthly
- quarterly
- annually
This table shows the numbers you need to use for each month of the tax year.
Tax year month | Reference number |
---|---|
6 April to 5 May | 01 |
6 May to 5 June | 02 |
6 June to 5 July | 03 |
6 July to 5 August | 04 |
6 August to 5 September | 05 |
6 September to 5 October | 06 |
6 October to 5 November | 07 |
6 November to 5 December | 08 |
6 December to 5 January | 09 |
6 January to 5 February | 10 |
6 February to 5 March | 11 |
6 March to 5 April | 12 |
This table shows the numbers you need to use for each quarter of the tax year.
Tax year quarter | Reference number |
---|---|
6 April to 5 July | 03 |
6 July to 5 October | 06 |
6 October to 5 January | 09 |
6 January to 5 April | 12 |
If you pay monthly
The 4 numbers you need to add to the end of your 13-character accounts office reference number are:
- the last 2 numbers of the tax year your payment is for
- the number of the month of the tax year your payment is for
###Example
If you’re making a payment for the month of 6 May to 5 June 2024, the 4 numbers you need to add to the end of your accounts office reference number are 2502. This is worked out as follows:
-
the tax year you’re paying for ends in 2025 = 25
-
the month you’re paying for (6 May to 5 June 2024) is the second month of the 2024 to 2025 tax year = 02
If you pay quarterly
The 4 numbers you need to add to the end of your 13-character accounts office reference number are:
- the last 2 numbers of the tax year your payment is for
- the number of the month of the tax year that the quarter ends on
###Example
If you’re making a payment for the quarter covering 6 April to 5 July 2024, the 4 numbers you need to add to the end of your accounts office reference number are 2503. This is worked out as follows:
-
the tax year you’re paying for ends in 2025 = 25
-
the quarter you’re paying for (6 April to 5 July 2024) ends on the third month of the tax year = 03
If you pay annually
The 4 numbers you need to add to the end of your 13-character accounts office reference number are:
- the last 2 numbers of the tax year your payment is for
- the month of the tax year you paid your employees
###Example
If you paid your employees on 8 October 2023, the 4 numbers you need to add are 2407. This is worked out as follows:
- the tax year you’re paying for ends in 2024 = 24
- the month you paid your employees (6 October to 5 November) is the seventh month of the tax year = 07