Paper payslips in brown envelopes are fading out, even in very small businesses. If you pay a nanny, a cleaner or a few staff, an emailed PDF is the obvious route. The law allows it. What it doesn't do is lower the bar on what a payslip must say or when it must arrive, and data protection law adds its own expectations about how you send it.
Are electronic payslips legal in the UK?
Yes. Section 8 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 gives every worker the right to an itemised pay statement at or before the time they are paid. It does not say the statement must be on paper, and GOV.UK states plainly that employers can choose whether to provide printed or electronic (online) payslips.
What the law cares about is that the employee actually receives it. A payslip on a portal nobody has a login to, or in an inbox the employee never set up, doesn't do the job. If someone can't access digital payslips, give them a printed copy.
What an electronic payslip must show
The format changes nothing about the content. Under section 8, and as GOV.UK summarises it, each payslip must show:
- pay before any deductions (gross pay)
- the amount and purpose of deductions that may change each time, such as income tax and National Insurance
- fixed deductions, either itemised or as a total backed by a separate written statement that you renew at least every 12 months
- pay after deductions (net pay)
- how a payment is split, if part goes by bank transfer and part another way
- the hours worked, if pay varies with the time worked
Our guide to payslip legal requirements covers exceptions and what happens if a payslip is missing or wrong.
The main ways to send payslips electronically
| Method | How it works | Good for | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Email a PDF | You attach each employee's payslip to an email | One to a handful of employees | Wrong recipient; anyone with the inbox can open it unless protected |
| Password-protected PDF | The PDF opens only with a password you share another way | Small employers who want more security without new software | Agreeing and remembering passwords |
| Employee portal or app from payroll software | Staff log in to see current and past payslips | Teams already on payroll software that includes one | Usually tied to a subscription; staff need logins |
| Shared cloud folder | Each employee has a private folder with their payslips | Families and micro employers already using cloud storage | Folder permissions set wrongly |
For a business with one or two employees, a PDF by email is usually the simplest choice that meets the law. Larger teams tend to move to a portal because it also handles P60s and past payslips without anyone resending them.
Keeping emailed payslips secure
A payslip carries a name, pay, tax code and often a National Insurance number. Under UK GDPR you must protect that information with appropriate security. The Information Commissioner's Office suggests encryption for personal data sent electronically, and for encrypted email attachments it says to send the password by a separate channel and never in the same email.
- Check the employee's email address with them once, in writing, before the first payslip.
- Prefer a personal address the employee chose over a shared family inbox.
- If you protect the PDF with a password, agree it in person or by phone, not in the email.
- Name files consistently, for example by pay date, so the employee can find them later.
- Keep your own copy: you need payroll records for HMRC anyway.
Common mistakes with emailed payslips
- Sending after payday. The right is to a statement at or before payment, so send it the same day as the transfer or earlier.
- Sending a spreadsheet instead of a document. An editable file invites accidental changes and is harder for the employee to keep; a PDF is fixed.
- Leaving out hours for hourly staff. If pay varies with time worked, the hours must be on the payslip.
- Copying last month's file and forgetting to update the year-to-date figures, which then disagree with the P60.
- Using one family email address for a nanny's payslips, so other people in the household can read them.
Electronic payslips and record keeping
Sending a payslip does not replace keeping payroll records. GOV.UK says employers must keep records of what they pay employees and the deductions they make for 3 years from the end of the tax year they relate to. A folder of the PDFs you sent, saved alongside your payroll software's records, covers the document side.
Making a PDF payslip with PayDocs
PayDocs makes a UK payslip as a PDF from your payroll figures, in one of six layouts, ready to attach to an email. PayDocs works out PAYE income tax, National Insurance and supported deductions for 2026/27 pay dates; any line can be overwritten with the figure your payroll software produced. It does not email the payslip for you, add a password to the file, or report anything to HMRC.
Creating and previewing a payslip is free. The finished PDF without the draft watermark is £3.99 once checkout opens, or less per document in packs of 4 or 12.
Questions
Can I email payslips to employees?
Yes. GOV.UK says employers can choose printed or electronic payslips. The employee must be able to open it on or before payday, and you should protect the personal data in it.
Do employees have to agree to electronic payslips?
GOV.UK leaves the choice of printed or electronic payslips to the employer. If an employee can't access electronic payslips, give them a printed one so they still receive it.
Should emailed payslips be password protected?
The ICO recommends encryption for personal data sent electronically. If you password-protect a payslip PDF, share the password separately, never in the same email.
Are electronic payslips the same as a P60?
No. A payslip covers one pay period. The P60 is the year-end summary you give each employee still working for you on 5 April.
Sources
- GOV.UK, Payslips
- Employment Rights Act 1996, section 8 (legislation.gov.uk)
- ICO, Encryption scenarios
- ICO, Encryption and data protection
- GOV.UK, PAYE and payroll for employers: keeping records
Sources checked 4 October 2026. This article explains how pay documents work; it is not tax or legal advice.
