P45 redaction is the removal of personal identifiers from the leaver statement an employer issues when employment ends. Regulation 36 of the Income Tax (PAYE) Regulations 2003 (SI 2003/2682) is the rule that requires it, and the same figures reach HMRC through the real time information return. anonym.plus marks the worker, NI number, and amounts on your device, so the totals stay clear while the named person is shielded.
When this applies
A P45 pairs pay and tax to date with a name and a National Insurance number on one small page. Regulation 97 of the same regulations requires PAYE records to be kept for at least three years after the end of the tax year they relate to, and national minimum wage records have had to be kept for six years since 1 April 2021. That is a long time for an identified pay record to sit in a folder a payroll supplier or auditor can open.
How anonym.plus handles it
- Open the statement in anonym.plus on your device.
- Local OCR reads a scanned pay record.
- The tool flags the worker, NI number, and contact lines.
- Apply Mask to keep only the final NI characters.
- Keep the pay-and-tax totals the form reports.
- Save the clean copy locally.
What you need to provide
- The P45 (PDF, DOCX, or scan).
- The Mask operator for the NI number, Replace for names.
- Optional allow-list for the employer PAYE reference.
PII entity types detected
| Category | anonym.plus entity type | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Identifiers | UK_NINO | QQ 12 34 56 C → QQ •• •• 56 C |
| Names | PERSON | Owen Parry → [WORKER] |
| Financial | MONEY | pay to date £5,240 → [AMOUNT] |
| Identifiers | NATIONAL_ID | PAYE ref 123/AB456 → [PAYE] |
| Dates | DATE_TIME | leaving 15/06 → [DATE] |
| Location | LOCATION | home address → [ADDRESS] |
Compliance achieved
- Keeps the pay and tax totals the P45 must carry on cessation of employment under Income Tax (PAYE) Regs 2003 reg. 36.
- Respects the retention floor in reg. 97 — PAYE records kept at least three years after the end of the tax year.
- Leaves legible the deduction detail ERA 1996 s.8 requires on an itemised pay statement.
- Supports the record-keeping duty in National Minimum Wage Act 1998 s.9, whose retention period has been six years since 1 April 2021.
- Masks the National Insurance number to its final characters in one pass, and offline work keeps payroll figures off any server.
Anonymise P45 leaver statements offline — see plans & start free →
Limitations & cautions
A spaced NI number on a faint scan can confuse OCR, so verify image pages. The tool masks what it detects. Never redact the copy you retain for reg. 97 purposes — clean the copy you share instead.
Frequently asked questions
How much of the NI number may stay?
Common practice keeps the final characters. anonym.plus uses the Mask operator to hide the rest in one pass.
Will the pay and tax totals survive?
Yes. Allow-list the total fields reg. 36 requires the P45 to carry, so they stay while identifiers go.
How long must I keep the underlying records?
PAYE records for at least three years after the end of the tax year under reg. 97, and national minimum wage records for six years. Keep those originals intact and redact the circulated copy.