P45
This is a document that your employer has to give the tax office so that the right amount of tax can be deducted from your earnings. When you leave a job, by law your employer must give you your P45.

Passport
A passport is a legal document that you must show when you travel to other countries. Up-to-date passports are a good form of identification, because they are an official Government record of your identity, and they contain your photo. You can get a passport application form from your local post office who, for a small charge, will make sure you have filled it in properly. New passports cost about £66 for adults. If you lose your passport, or if it is stolen, report it to the police.

Paying in
If you pay in money, you put it into your account. This could be cash or cheques.

Pay period
The year is divided into equal periods for getting paid starting from early April (which is also start of the tax year). If you are paid monthly, there are 12 pay periods, if you are paid weekly, there are 52.

Payee
This is the person you are paying money to when you write out a cheque.

Paying-in slip
When you pay money into your account, you need to fill in a paying-in slip. You fill in how much you are paying in and whether it is in cash, cheques, or both. Your bank or building society will give you a book of paying-in slips when you open the account, and there are usually some at the back of your chequebook as well.

Pension
This is a regular payment paid to someone who has reached retirement age (at the moment this is 60 for women and 65 for men).There are four main types of pension: 
occupational pensions
personal pensions
stakeholder pensions and
State Pensions.

Pension deductions
Payments into a pension scheme arranged by your employer will be taken automatically from your pay. This will show up on your payslip as 'pension deductions'.

Personal loan
Many different companies offer personal loans. These are usually loans that you can use to pay for whatever you want. But, as with all loans, make sure you check the interest rate and conditions first to get the best deal.

Personal pension
You can arrange a personal pension through a bank, building society or life insurance company. You can save as much as you like in a personal pension and you can start receiving an income from a personal pension when you are 50.

Phone call itemising
Most phone bills break down the cost of calls. This may include a list of the more expensive calls - international calls and calls to mobiles, for instance - as well as the date and time they were made. This breakdown can help you to work out: 
if a bill is correct
how you may be able to save money by phoning at off peak times and
if another service package may be more suitable for you.

PIN
PIN stands for 'personal identification number'. This is a code of four numbers for you to use with a cash machine card. The PIN is for security so you must remember it and keep it secret. It identifies you and anyone else using your account. Never write down your PIN and keep it with your card (it is best not to keep it written down at all), and never tell it to anyone else - not even the people who work in the bank.

Policy
Policy is another word for plan or cover. When you take out insurance, you receive a policy from the insurance company telling you the kind of events you are insured for, and how much money the company is prepared to pay out. The policy is your contract with the insurance company.

Premium
This is the amount you have to pay to buy insurance. You may be able to pay the premium in monthly instalments.

Priority debts
These are debts which are more important than others because the law lets the people you owe the money to take serious action against you. Priority debts include things like: 

a mortgage because your home could be repossessed (taken off you) if you do not keep up your mortgage repayments and
fuel bills because your gas or electricity could be cut off.

Q

Quarterly statements
Statements are written records of how much money you have in your account. The bank sends them to you automatically. A quarterly statement comes every three months.

R

Receipts
This is money coming in to a company from selling goods and services, for example.
Repayments
These are the sums of money you pay back weekly or monthly on your loan or credit.

Return
The return is the profit you make if you invest your money. Usually if an investment offers a high return, it will be quite risky.

Rights
This is the protection that is given to you by law. For example, you have a right to compensation if your bank goes bankrupt and you lose money.

Risk
This is the possibility that you may lose money if you savings fall in value or interest rates or inflation rates change.

S

Savings
You savings are any money you put aside for future use. You may keep the money in a deposit account - or even under your bed. 'Rainy day' savings are useful for emergencies and you need to be able to get hold of them easily while you can build up longer term savings to give a 'nest egg'.

Savings accounts
Savings are often kept in bank, building society or National Savings accounts. The amount you put in does not fall in value but may grow as interest is added.

Secured loan
A secured loan means that you borrow money against the cost of something you own. This way the lender can be sure that if you cannot make the repayments, they will get their money back. For example, some homeowners borrow money against their houses. This means that if they cannot make the payments, the lender may repossess (take over) their house.

Shares
If you invest in a company's shares, you become part owner of that company, along with all the other shareholders. Some shares pay you an income (called dividends) regularly. All shares carry some risk. If the share price rises, you will make a profit when you sell them, but if the share price falls, you will make a loss.

Short term
This usually means a period of time no longer than five years and often a lot shorter.

Signatory
A signatory is a person who signs a document. For instance, if you are making an application and sign a form, you are the signatory.

Stakeholder pension
This is a type of personal pension which may suit you if you are self-employed or not working, or if your employer doesn't have a company pension scheme. You can pay as little as £20 a month and you don't have to pay every month.

Standing order
This is a way of paying regular amounts to a person or organisation automatically. You tell your bank how much to pay and when to pay it. It is your responsibility to make any changes to the payment if it needs to alter.

State Pension
When you retire, the State pays you a state pension. The amount you get will depend on how many National Insurance contributions you have paid (or, if you are a married woman, how many contributions your husband has paid).

Statement
This is a document from the bank or building society which shows all your recent payments into and withdrawals from your account. You should check it with your own records.

Store cards
Store cards are like credit cards, but are available from shops rather than banks. They can only be used to buy things at particular shops. Anything you spend on your store card is borrowed money. If you do not pay off the full amount each month, you will start paying interest on it.