National Insurance

You pay National Insurance (NICs) contributions to build up your entitlement to benefits like the State Pension. Like tax payments, the amount of National Insurance you pay depends on how much you earn. Most students don’t pay NICs because their earning are too small, but if you earn over £110 a week or £476 a month you’ll pay NICs at 11%. Unfortunately, you can’t claim it back if you overpay in the same way you can with income tax.

The DirectGov website has a section on National Insurance contributions which you can check if you’re still unsure whether you have to pay.

Claiming a tax refund

If you’ve paid too much tax you really should claim it back! If money’s tight, as it usually is on a student budget, you absolutely should be claiming what’s yours. A tax refund could turn out to be a nice little windfall so it’s really worth getting on to the tax office and getting your money back.

In theory you shouldn’t have paid too much tax as your employer should make sure they’ve told the tax office the right rate you should be paying at. Mistakes can be made however. The most common circumstances for overpaying tax are:

• You didn’t fill out the Student Employees P38 Form for working only in the holidays
• You started a new job and were given an emergency tax code for a while
• Your employer gave you the wrong tax code
• You were only employed for part of the year

HM Revenue and Customs have a handy tax checker you can use to see how much of a refund you could get.

The way you claim back the extra tax depends on your circumstances:

• If you were working during the holidays but have returned to studying you should fill out a P50 form.
• If you’ve overpaid through wage deductions, which is more likely if you work during term rather than just in the holidays, you need to write to your tax office explaining that you think you’ve paid too much tax. If they don’t have the right information to check out your claim they’ll write to say what documents you need to send to them. Find the details for your local tax office here.

Council tax

Full-time students are exempt from paying council tax. Part-time students are not, though you can claim relief if your income is low enough. The situation can also get trickier if you live with a non-student – usually if you’re living with a non-student you’ll qualify for a council tax discount. To qualify for an exemption or discount you should contact your local council: find their details here.

Benefits

Students aren’t generally entitled to social security benefits, either in term time or holidays. There are a few exceptions. If you fall under any of the following categories you should check with your university, student union or the Department for Work and Pensionsin case you’re entitled to extra cash:

• Single parents
• Student couples with children
• Disabled students
• Couples where one partner isn’t a full-time student
• Part-time students on a low income

Useful links

• DirectGov
• HM Revenue and Customs
• National Union of Students – advice on students and council tax

For more information about student finance check out our article on student grants and loans and bursaries, scholarships and sponsorship you could get.