4 ms·

Sigh - as always, this piece of advice works less well across the pond, where there is a requirement to honestly state your current salary, which your P45 will

Sigh - as always, this piece of advice works less well across the pond, where there is a requirement to honestly state your current salary, which your P45 will be checked against to validate it, especially now we have real time PAYE requirement. My advice for the UK based folks is simple - go through an agent, defer all salary discussions as something "you promised to sort out with the agent", and then go for the rate you want, and stick with it. It is hard, but can be done. Remember, most agents will play along with this, as they are often on a percentage fee basis, so it aligns with their sales-weasel interests too!

yardie 11y ago
Wait, when did the P45 become part of the screening process in the UK. I have my P45 and the only parties that have asked for it are banks and credit agencies. If a recruiter asks for a P45 off he bat I'm marking them as spam.
- fukupayme55 11y ago
  Well, if tried a strategy of not telling the new employer direct what your salary is, or worse, lying, they will quickly see when the P45 is passed onto their payroll to sort out your P45. Which is why it is better to simply state you promised the agent that you would discuss the salary with them, and would then focus on discussing the specific about the role with the employer.
  - walshemj 11y ago
    You know you do not have to provide a P45 to your new employer Just say "sorry I lost it put me on the emergency Tax code" I Have started jobs with out a p45 and unless you have complex tax status its not a big deal.
    - Flenser 11y ago
      Wouldn't they still be able to work it out when your tax code is corrected?
- pricechild 11y ago
  Looks like he's not wrong: https://www.gov.uk/paye-forms-p45-p60-p11d/p45 https://www.gov.uk/paye-forms-p45-p60-p11d/p45 As you say, I don't see any legitimate reason for a recruiter to have it though, just a new employer when you begin employment?
Leynos 11y ago
At what point are you actually required to disclose your current salary during the interview process? I had one recruitment agent actually asked me to bring documentary evidence of my current salary with me to the onboarding interview. I did at the time, but I have no desire to work with that recruiter again, especially as they lied to me about the nature of one of the interviews I would be attending. The whole process ended up feeling really shady.
kapacuk 11y ago
I would not worry too much about it. P45 does not show your base salary, it only shows how much you've actually earned, it's not necessarily the same thing.
walshemj 11y ago
Is it? I haven't seen any legal rulings on this area in the UK. Agencies would get in trouble with the Data Protection Act if they asked to see your P45. And I just recalled you do not have to provide a p45 its just makes seting up PAYE slightly easier
irremediable 11y ago
In my experience, you're being a bit pessimistic there. The only people who'll need to see your P45 are the employers you're joining, in the first few weeks of your joining. And if they've already hired you, they've already agreed a salary with you, so they probably won't care too much about this. Even if they do hassle you, you can easily say that you just asked for the amount you wanted -- or that you were counting income you've made from independent projects that you won't be able to pursue in this demanding new job. Of course, this does all hinge on your giving a number that they find reasonable... but then, that's a given.
hackerboos 11y ago
I've never given an employer a P45 ever. I would never give an employer a piece of paper which stated previous salary. There's no legal requirement to do this and if I was asked it would be a dealbreaker. Don't put up with these kinds of demands.

yardie 11y ago

Wait, when did the P45 become part of the screening process in the UK. I have my P45 and the only parties that have asked for it are banks and credit agencies. If a recruiter asks for a P45 off he bat I'm marking them as spam.

fukupayme55 11y ago
Well, if tried a strategy of not telling the new employer direct what your salary is, or worse, lying, they will quickly see when the P45 is passed onto their payroll to sort out your P45. Which is why it is better to simply state you promised the agent that you would discuss the salary with them, and would then focus on discussing the specific about the role with the employer.
- walshemj 11y ago
  You know you do not have to provide a P45 to your new employer Just say "sorry I lost it put me on the emergency Tax code" I Have started jobs with out a p45 and unless you have complex tax status its not a big deal.
  - Flenser 11y ago
    Wouldn't they still be able to work it out when your tax code is corrected?
pricechild 11y ago
Looks like he's not wrong: https://www.gov.uk/paye-forms-p45-p60-p11d/p45 https://www.gov.uk/paye-forms-p45-p60-p11d/p45 As you say, I don't see any legitimate reason for a recruiter to have it though, just a new employer when you begin employment?

Leynos 11y ago

At what point are you actually required to disclose your current salary during the interview process? I had one recruitment agent actually asked me to bring documentary evidence of my current salary with me to the onboarding interview. I did at the time, but I have no desire to work with that recruiter again, especially as they lied to me about the nature of one of the interviews I would be attending. The whole process ended up feeling really shady.

kapacuk 11y ago

I would not worry too much about it. P45 does not show your base salary, it only shows how much you've actually earned, it's not necessarily the same thing.

walshemj 11y ago

Is it? I haven't seen any legal rulings on this area in the UK. Agencies would get in trouble with the Data Protection Act if they asked to see your P45. And I just recalled you do not have to provide a p45 its just makes seting up PAYE slightly easier

irremediable 11y ago

In my experience, you're being a bit pessimistic there. The only people who'll need to see your P45 are the employers you're joining, in the first few weeks of your joining. And if they've already hired you, they've already agreed a salary with you, so they probably won't care too much about this. Even if they do hassle you, you can easily say that you just asked for the amount you wanted -- or that you were counting income you've made from independent projects that you won't be able to pursue in this demanding new job. Of course, this does all hinge on your giving a number that they find reasonable... but then, that's a given.

hackerboos 11y ago

I've never given an employer a P45 ever. I would never give an employer a piece of paper which stated previous salary. There's no legal requirement to do this and if I was asked it would be a dealbreaker. Don't put up with these kinds of demands.