Guides › Work and Employment › Final Pay After Leaving a Job: What You Are Owed
Final Pay After Leaving A Job: What You Are Owed
When you leave a job you are normally owed everything you earned up to your last day, plus pay for any statutory holiday you built up and did not take. Your employer can only take back holiday you took above your entitlement if you agreed to that in writing beforehand. If your final pay is short or missing, the routes are the same as for any unpaid wages.
At A Glance
Your Rights
What the rules say, with a link to the official source for each.
What Your Final Pay Includes
Wages to Your Last Day
You are normally entitled to everything you earned up to your last day. Check your contract for any rule letting your employer withhold pay. source
Untaken Holiday
Your employer must pay you for untaken statutory holiday you built up. This applies even if you were dismissed for gross misconduct. Leaving is the only time statutory holiday can be paid instead of taken. source
Holiday Taken Over Entitlement
Your employer can only take this back from your final pay if you agreed in writing beforehand, for example in your contract. source
If It Is Not Paid
Constructive Dismissal
If you resigned because your employer refused to pay you, you may also have a constructive dismissal claim. source
Time Limits to Know
Miss a deadline and you can lose a right. Check the dates on your own paperwork.
- 6 monthsTribunal time limit (minus 1 day)From when you should have been paid, if on or after 1 October 2026
Steps to Take
Step 1 of 4
Ask for your final payslip and P45.
Step 2 of 4
Work out what is owed: wages, holiday, notice pay, overtime or commission.
Step 3 of 4
Write to your old employer asking for payment by a set date.
Step 4 of 4
Tell Acas and claim at a tribunal if it is not paid.
(Tap the numbers to reveal steps)
Where to Go If It Is Not Put Right
Your options, in order, and when each one applies.
Acas Helpline
Free and confidential. 0300 123 1100, Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm.
Acas Early Conciliation
You must tell Acas before you make most tribunal claims. It is free.
Redundancy Payments Service
If your employer has gone bust.
Good to Know
Small things that make your complaint stronger.
Rules here are for England, Scotland and Wales. Northern Ireland has its own employment law, the Labour Relations Agency and industrial tribunals; see nidirect.
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Lead reviewer
Luke Marley
Founder and Lead Reviewer
Luke founded CPUK in 2026 after seeing how hard it is for ordinary people to get problems with companies put right. He oversees our guides and checks them against official sources.
Research by Katie Burt, Co-founder and Operations Lead (17 years in the care sector, including managing services for vulnerable adults), and the CPUK Research Team. Researched with AI-assisted research tools, then checked and corrected by our team.
Last checked: 15 October 2026. We are not paid by the companies we write about. Adverts never affect our guidance. Read our editorial policy.
Sources and official links
- gov.uk/understanding-your-pay/deductions-from-your-pay Checked 15 October 2026
- gov.uk/holiday-entitlement-rights/taking-holiday-before-leaving-a-job Checked 15 October 2026
- acas.org.uk/final-pay-when-someone-leaves-a-job/how-holidays-affect-final-pay Checked 15 October 2026
- acas.org.uk/contact Checked 8 October 2026
- acas.org.uk/early-conciliation/how-early-conciliation-works Checked 8 October 2026
- gov.uk/your-rights-if-your-employer-is-insolvent/apply-money-owed Checked 8 October 2026