Ndubuisi Egwim explains how doctors often get stuck with wrong tax codes after job changes, causing them to overpay or underpay taxes and face surprise bills. Check your payslip each month to make sure HMRC has your correct code.
Mistake 3: Ignoring your tax code. That sounds incredibly boring, but it could save you a lot of money. Please take a minute to look at your payslip. Every August, thousands of doctors rotate, and irrespective of where it is, foundation training starts and ends, specialty training begins, consultants change hospitals, and GPs change employers. There's an issue with that. Many doctors suddenly appear to HMRC as though they have two jobs. And that's when the problems start. You may end up on an emergency tax code, a temporary one, or one that simply doesn't reflect your true circumstances. The result is that you could pay far too much tax or too little tax and then get a brown envelope letter to say you owe us some tax. The goal is not to avoid paying tax. We all benefit from public services, but the goal is to pay the right amount and not overpay, not more. Not less. You want to pay the right amount. Okay, now one quick look at your payslip each month could save you a lot of hassle later. I don't want to start getting those brown envelopes that could cause you to start stressing. Mistake number 4: thinking that your salary automatically makes you financially secure.
