You don't pay a higher rate just for having a second job — but it feels that way, because your tax-free Personal Allowance is normally used up entirely by your main job. A second employed job is typically taxed at a flat 20% through a BR tax code (40% D0 if you're a higher-rate payer). A second income that's freelance goes through Self Assessment instead — use the calculator above with your main salary in the "other income" box.
- Your £12,570 Personal Allowance is applied to one job (usually the main one) — the second is taxed from the first pound.
- Employed second job: tax code BR = flat 20% (or D0 = 40%, D1 = 45%). Your employer deducts it — nothing to file.
- Freelance second income: Self Assessment, Income Tax at your marginal rate — plus Class 4 NI, but only once the freelance profit alone passes £12,570.
- National Insurance is per job, not combined: each employment gets its own £12,570 threshold before employee NI starts — two half-time jobs can mean less NI than one full-time job.
- If your main job pays under £12,570, ask HMRC to split your allowance across both jobs so it isn't wasted.
Second employed job — what the BR code takes
| Your total income puts you in | Second-job tax code | Deduction on second-job pay |
|---|---|---|
| Basic rate (up to £50,270) | BR | 20% flat |
| Higher rate (£50,271–£125,140) | D0 | 40% flat |
| Additional rate (over £125,140) | D1 | 45% flat |
Employee NI (8% between £12,570 and £50,270 of pay in that job, 2% above) is worked out separately per employer. Because each job gets its own NI threshold, someone earning £10,000 in each of two jobs pays no employee NI at all — while one £20,000 job would cost £594.
Watch the band boundary
The flat BR code can under- or over-tax you. If your two jobs together push you over £50,270, part of the second job's pay should really be taxed at 40%, not 20% — HMRC usually catches up via a tax-code change or an end-of-year bill. The reverse also happens: if your main job doesn't use the whole Personal Allowance, BR on the second job means you're overpaying and are due a refund. Either way, check your codes at gov.uk rather than waiting.
Freelance second income — worked example
| Step | Calculation | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Main salary | PAYE job | £28,000 |
| Evening freelance income | tutoring | £6,000 |
| Expenses | materials, travel | −£500 |
| £1,000 trading allowance instead | £1,000 > £500 | −£1,000 |
| Taxable profit | £6,000 − £1,000 | £5,000 |
| Income Tax | £5,000 × 20% | £1,000 |
| Class 4 NI | profit under £12,570 on its own — the NI threshold ignores your salary | £0 |
| Owed via Self Assessment (31 Jan 2028) | £1,000 |
Frequently asked questions
Do I get taxed 50% on a second job?
No — that's a myth. The second job just doesn't get a tax-free allowance, so 20% (or 40%) comes off every pound, which looks brutal next to a main-job payslip. Your overall rate is the same as if you'd earned it all in one job — often slightly less, thanks to the per-job NI threshold.
Do I need to tell HMRC about a second employed job?
No. Your new employer's payroll registration does it automatically, and HMRC assigns the BR/D0 code. You only contact HMRC if the code looks wrong or you want your allowance split differently.
Does a second job affect my student loan?
Each employer deducts student loan only if that job crosses the plan threshold, but if you file Self Assessment your total income is used — which can trigger a top-up. Check the numbers with our student loan calculator.
My second income is freelance — when does HMRC need to know?
Once it tops £1,000 gross in a tax year, register for Self Assessment by 5 October after that year ends. Below £1,000 the trading allowance usually covers it — see the side hustle calculator for those rules.