UK tax rates and allowances 2026/27

The tax year runs from 6 April 2026 to 5 April 2027. This page gathers every UK rate and allowance you are likely to need, in one place, with the figures we use in our calculators. All amounts have been verified against the official GOV.UK rates and allowances publications.

Income tax bands

Everyone has a tax-free personal allowance of £12,570. Income above that is taxed in slices:

Band	Income range	Rate
Personal allowance	£0 – £12,570	0%
Basic rate	£12,571 – £50,270	20%
Higher rate	£50,271 – £125,140	40%
Additional rate	Over £125,140	45%

Watch the £100,000–£125,140 trap. Your personal allowance shrinks by £1 for every £2 of income above £100,000, so that slice of income is effectively taxed at 60%. Pension contributions can help keep you below the threshold.

Bands are marginal: moving into a higher band only taxes the income above the threshold, never your whole salary. Use our income tax calculator or salary calculator to see your own split.

Scottish income tax

Scotland uses a separate band structure, applied to Scottish taxpayers:

Band	Income range	Rate
Starter	£0 – £3,967	19%
Basic	£3,967 – £16,956	20%
Intermediate	£16,956 – £31,092	21%
Higher	£31,092 – £62,430	42%
Advanced	£62,430 – £125,140	45%
Top	Over £125,140	48%

The personal allowance works the same way everywhere in the UK.

National Insurance (employees)

Employee National Insurance applies to earnings between the primary threshold and upper earnings limit:

	2026/27
Primary threshold	£12,570 a year
Upper earnings limit	£50,270 a year
Main rate	8%
Higher rate (above UEL)	2%
Employer rate	15%
Employer secondary threshold	£5,000 a year

The personal allowance and NI primary threshold are aligned at £12,570, which is why take-home pay rises smoothly from that point. Try the National Insurance calculator.

Self-employed National Insurance

	2026/27
Class 2	£3.65 a week
Small profits threshold	£7,105 a year
Class 4 lower limit	£12,570
Class 4 upper limit	£50,270
Class 4 main rate	6%
Class 4 higher rate (above £50,270)	2%

You only pay Class 2 NI if your profits are above the small profits threshold, and it now builds your entitlement to the State Pension and contributory benefits. See GOV.UK on self-employed National Insurance and our self-employed tax calculator.

Student loan repayments

Repayments are 9% of income above your plan’s threshold (6% for a Postgraduate Loan):

Plan	Threshold	Rate
Plan 1	£26,900	9%
Plan 2	£29,385	9%
Plan 4	£33,795	9%
Plan 5	£25,000	9%
Postgraduate	£21,000	6%

Which plan applies depends on where and when you studied. Check the official guidance and run the numbers in the student loan repayment calculator.

VAT

Rate	Applies to
20% standard	Most goods and services
5% reduced	Domestic fuel and power, some energy-saving materials
0%	Most food, children’s clothes, books, public transport

See GOV.UK on VAT rates and use the VAT calculator to add or remove VAT on any amount.

Dividend tax

The tax-free dividend allowance is £500 for 2026/27. Above that, dividends are taxed at:

Tax band	Rate
Basic rate	8.75%
Higher rate	33.75%
Additional rate	39.35%

Dividends also use up your personal allowance first. See GOV.UK on dividend tax and our dividend tax calculator.

Corporation tax

Profits	Rate
Up to £50,000	19%
£50,001 – £250,000	19%–25% with marginal relief
Over £250,000	25%

The thresholds are divided between companies under common control. See GOV.UK on corporation tax rates and use the corporation tax calculator.

Savings and property

• Personal savings allowance: £1,000 for basic-rate taxpayers, £500 for higher-rate, £0 for additional-rate.
• Stamp duty (SDLT): 0% up to £125,000, 2% to £250,000, 5% to £925,000, 10% to £1.5m and 12% above — with an extra 5% surcharge on additional properties and first-time buyer relief up to £300,000. Try the stamp duty calculator.

Minimum wage and statutory payments

From April 2026:

Rate	2026/27
National Living Wage (21 and over)	£12.71 an hour
18–20 year olds	£10.85
Under 18 / apprentice	£8.00

• Statutory Sick Pay: £123.25 a week for up to 28 weeks.
• Statutory Maternity Pay: 90% of average weekly earnings for 6 weeks, then £194.32 a week for 33 weeks.

Official figures are on GOV.UK’s minimum wage page. Check the HMRC tax year rates before relying on any figure for your own return.

Check your own numbers

The quickest way to see how these rates apply to you is to put your own figures into the calculators — start with the salary calculator, which combines income tax, National Insurance, student loan repayments and pension contributions in one result.