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An SA302 is the tax calculation that comes from your Self Assessment tax return. It lists the income you declared to HMRC for a tax year and shows the Income Tax and National Insurance due on it. Most people only hear about it when a mortgage lender asks for proof of income, then spend an afternoon working out where to find one. This guide covers what the document is, what it proves, and the exact steps to get yours, whether you filed online or through an accountant.
What is an SA302?
An SA302 is a one or two page summary of a single tax year, produced from the figures on your Self Assessment return. It breaks down your total income, the tax bands it falls into, and the final amount owed or already paid. HMRC also calls it a tax calculation, and the two terms mean the same thing.
It is not a separate form you fill in. You complete your Self Assessment, and the SA302 is the result HMRC calculates from it. That is why you cannot request one until your return for that year has been submitted.
People often confuse it with two other documents. The SA100 is the main Self Assessment return you submit. The tax year overview is a short HMRC statement confirming the tax due and paid for the year. Lenders usually want the SA302 and the tax year overview together, because one shows the breakdown and the other confirms the return reached HMRC.
What is an SA302 for?
The SA302 works as official proof of income. When you do not have payslips from an employer, it is the document that confirms what you earned and what you reported to HMRC.
Mortgage lenders are the most common reason people need one. If you are self-employed, a company director, or you have income outside PAYE, the lender cannot pull your salary from an employer, so it asks for your SA302 instead. Landlords, letting agents, and some loan or visa applications ask for the same thing. In each case the document does one job: it backs up your stated income with a record HMRC produced.
If you run a business and want to understand how your return feeds into this calculation, our guide on how accountants help with Self Assessment walks through where the numbers come from.
How do I get my SA302?
How you get your SA302 depends on how you filed your return. There are two routes, and people pick the wrong one all the time, so check which applies to you first.
If you filed online with HMRC
Sign in to your HMRC online account and you can download the document in a few minutes.
- Log in at the HMRC online services sign in page.
- Go to Self Assessment, then to the section for viewing your returns and tax calculations.
- Select the tax year you need and choose the option to get your SA302 tax calculation.
- Save or print it as a PDF, then download the matching tax year overview for the same year.
HMRC sets out the same steps on its own page for getting your SA302 tax calculation, which also lists the lenders that accept the printed version.
If you filed through software or an accountant
When your return goes to HMRC through commercial software, the SA302 often will not appear in your HMRC online account. This catches a lot of people out. In that case you print the tax calculation from the software that filed the return, not from the HMRC website.
The printed software version is accepted by HMRC and by the main mortgage lenders, so it carries the same weight as the HMRC copy. If we filed your return for you, ask and we will send the tax calculation and tax year overview across, usually the same day.
Does HMRC still issue the SA302?
HMRC stopped posting paper SA302s on request several years ago, so you now produce the document yourself rather than wait for one in the post. This change confused a lot of borrowers who had been told to ask HMRC for a stamped copy.
The fix came from the lenders. Working with UK Finance, the trade body for the mortgage industry, the major lenders agreed to accept the SA302 and tax year overview that you print yourself, either from your HMRC account or from your filing software. A posted, stamped SA302 is no longer part of the process for most applications. If a lender still asks for one, point them to HMRC’s own guidance, which confirms the self-printed version is acceptable.
Using your SA302 for a mortgage
For a mortgage, lenders almost always want your SA302 tax calculation and your tax year overview side by side, usually for the last two or three tax years.
The two documents do different jobs. The SA302 shows the income breakdown and the tax due. The tax year overview confirms that the return was filed and the tax was accounted for. A lender reading them together can see both what you declared and that HMRC received it. Print both for each year the lender asks for, keep them as PDFs, and you have everything a broker or underwriter needs. There is no need to phone HMRC or wait for anything by post.
SA302 for a limited company director
A company director uses an SA302 to prove personal income, such as salary and dividends, declared on a personal Self Assessment return. It sits separately from the company’s own accounts and Corporation Tax.
This trips up directors who assume the company accounts cover everything. A lender assessing you as an individual wants to see your personal income, and the SA302 is where that lives. If you take a small salary topped up with dividends, the SA302 captures both, which is exactly the picture a mortgage underwriter is looking for. Your company’s filings answer a different question and do not replace it.
What an SA302 looks like
An SA302 is a plain HMRC document, not a certificate. At the top it shows your name, Unique Taxpayer Reference, and the tax year. Below that it lists your income by type, applies the tax bands, and ends with the total tax due for the year. The tax year overview that goes with it is shorter still, often a single page confirming the amount due and paid.
Knowing what to expect helps when a lender asks for “the HMRC tax calculation” rather than naming the SA302 directly. They are asking for the same thing.
Self Assessment support
Get help with your SA302 and Self Assessment
If you are mid-application and the lender wants documents this week, we can retrieve your SA302 and tax year overview and have them with you quickly. We also handle the return itself, so the figures hold up when an underwriter checks them. Newly self-employed and not sure where to start? Read our guide on registering as self-employed in the UK, or get in touch with our team and we will sort the paperwork for you.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I obtain my SA302?
If you filed online with HMRC, sign in to your HMRC account, open Self Assessment, choose the SA302 tax calculation for the year you need, and save it as a PDF along with the tax year overview. If you filed through software or an accountant, print the tax calculation from that software instead, as it may not appear in your HMRC account.
What is a SA302 for?
An SA302 is used as proof of income. Mortgage lenders, landlords, and some loan or visa applications ask for it to confirm the income you declared to HMRC, normally alongside your tax year overview. It is the standard income evidence for self-employed people, company directors, and anyone earning outside PAYE.
Does HMRC still issue the SA302?
HMRC no longer posts paper SA302s on request. You produce the equivalent yourself, either from your HMRC online account or by printing the tax calculation from your filing software. Mortgage lenders, through an arrangement with UK Finance, accept these self-printed versions, so a posted SA302 is no longer needed.
Can I download an SA302 online?
Yes, if you filed your Self Assessment through HMRC’s online service. Sign in to your HMRC account and download the SA302 tax calculation and the tax year overview as PDFs. If you filed through software, download the tax calculation from that software, because the SA302 may not appear in your HMRC online account.
