Payslips: what they must show

These rules apply in England, Scotland and Wales. Northern Ireland has its own rule.

Who must get a payslip

Every employee and every worker must get one. A worker does work for you personally under a contract, and is not your client or customer. Genuinely self-employed contractors and freelancers are not workers, so they get no payslip.

A family member who works for you gets a payslip only if they are an employee or a worker. If an agency pays the worker, the agency gives them the payslip.

What a payslip must show

Section 8 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 sets the contents. The Employment Rights Act 2025 has not changed them.

Show hours for time-based pay

Show total hours when the amount you pay depends on time worked. Make clear which pay period the hours cover. You can show one total, or separate totals for different types of work or rates of pay, such as 17 hours at the normal rate and 8 hours at a bank holiday rate.

Whether you show hours depends on how the pay is set:

• hourly paid workers need all hours worked in the pay period
• day-rate workers need hours, because pay still depends on time worked
• a salary plus paid overtime needs the overtime hours only
• a fixed salary needs no hours
• equal monthly instalments for term-time staff need no hours

A salaried worker whose pay drops because of unpaid leave or Statutory Sick Pay does not need an hours figure. A worker paid by time who takes unpaid leave still shows the hours they did work.

When to give the payslip

The first payslip is due with the first payment, not on the first day of work.

Paper and digital payslips

You can give payslips on paper, as an email attachment or through an online system. A worker who cannot access payslips online should get another format, such as paper.

Showing fixed deductions as one total

A fixed deduction, such as a season ticket loan repayment, can form part of one total on the payslip. To do that, give the worker a standing statement at or before the time you give the payslip.

Keep copies of payslips

Sections 8 to 12 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 set no retention period for payslips. Payslips support your PAYE, minimum wage and holiday pay records, so keep a copy of each one for as long as the longest of those records.

If a payslip is missing or wrong

A worker can ask an employment tribunal to decide what a missing or incomplete payslip should have shown. A dispute only about whether an amount is correct is not a payslip claim. It goes as a claim for unlawful deduction from wages or breach of contract.

Where to get help

Ask the Acas helpline if you are unsure whether someone is a worker or what a payslip should show. In Northern Ireland, ask the Labour Relations Agency.