List of Welsh Tax Codes - Guide for Employers

Tackling payroll for the first time? As a business or organisation with employees, you’ll need to get to grips with tax codes.

If you employ people in Wales, read on. We’ve put together a helpful guide to Welsh tax codes, including what they mean, how they work and a list of the most common tax codes in Wales.

You don’t need to know absolutely everything about tax codes and the Welsh tax system to run payroll effectively. But it’s definitely helpful to have a working knowledge of how tax codes work - and what your responsibilities are as an employer.

What do Welsh tax codes mean?

Tax codes in Wales tell employers how much tax to deduct from an employee’s pay each week or month, before paying it to HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC).

HMRC issues tax codes, but it’s the employer’s responsibility to make sure the right code is being used.

This means keeping on top of any changes, and paying attention to notifications or updates sent by the tax authority. If the code is wrong, it could result in underpaid or overpaid tax.

How do tax codes work in Wales?

Welsh tax codes work in just the same way as England and other parts of the UK. They’re part of the Pay As You Earn (PAYE) system.

When an employee starts work at a company, the employer needs to enter their details into their payroll system and send an update to HMRC. The tax authority will provide a tax code, which is made up of letters and numbers. The numbers refer to the employee’s Personal Allowance, which is the amount they can earn before they start paying tax.

Tax codes act as a kind of shortcut when it comes to calculating the amount of tax owed. They save employers and workers from having to carry out complex calculations, where there’s always the risk of human error.

If you’re running payroll, it’s crucial that you use the right tax codes. This will ensure the correct tax is paid, which can save you from penalties and headaches later on.

When you have employees in different countries, managing your company’s income tax obligations can be complicated. The good news though is that there are international payroll solutions that you can use alongside with international payments providers, such as Wise Business, which can make it easier to make batch payments in multiple currencies.

💡Learn more about Wise Business

How to find an employee's Welsh tax code?

Got a new starter in Wales? Here’s how to find their tax code:¹

1. Ask your new employee for their P45
2. If your employee doesn’t have a recent P45, ask them to complete a Starter Checklist to gather the details you need
3. Using the details from the P45, use this HMRC tool to work out their tax code
4. Submit the new starter information to HMRC
5. You’ll be issued with a Welsh PAYE tax code for the employee, but may need to use an emergency tax code for the next payday until the new starter information can be processed.

List of Welsh tax codes

Wales tax codes are structured in the same way as UK tax codes. They start with a letter or letters, the first of which is always a C if the employee is a Welsh taxpayer. The letters are followed by numbers, which relate to the employee’s Personal Allowance.

It can be helpful as an employer to become familiar with a few of the most common tax codes in Wales. Let’s take a look:²

Pay employees abroad with Wise Business

Tax can be complicated, especially when you employ people in multiple countries. But paying your staff doesn’t have to be.

If you have a team spread across Wales, the rest of the UK or worldwide, you can pay them quickly and easily using Wise Business.

Open a Wise Business account and you can pay up to 1,000 people at once using the handy Batch Payments tool. You can even automate payments with the Wise API, and seamlessly integrate your accounting tools and other business software.

Not only does Wise Business save you time on payroll, but money too. Wise lets you send payments in multiple currencies for low fees and mid-market exchange rates. If you have an international workforce, this could save your business a small fortune.

Get started with Wise Business 🚀

And that’s about everything you need to know about Welsh tax codes as a UK employer running payroll. We’ve covered all the essentials, including how tax codes in Wales work and what they mean. Plus, a list of the most common Welsh tax codes you’re most likely to come across.

After reading this, you should feel a little more confident when managing employee pay, taxes and tax codes.

Although remember that if you need help, there’s plenty of advice and guidance available on the GOV.UK website. Alternatively, you can get specialist advice for things like international payroll, which can be much more complicated.

*Disclaimer: The UK Wise Business pricing structure is changing with effect from 26/11/2025 date. Receiving money, direct debits and getting paid features are not available with the Essential Plan which you can open for free. Pay a one-time set up fee of £50 to unlock Advanced features including account details to receive payments in 22+ currencies or 8+ currencies for non-swift payments. You’ll also get access to our invoice generating tool, payment links, QuickPay QR codes and the ability to set up direct debits all within one account. Please check our website for the latest pricing information.

Sources used for this article:

Sources last checked on December 30, 2024.