1. Income Tax — England, Wales & Northern Ireland (rUK)
Three bands above the £12,570 Personal Allowance, with the additional-rate threshold frozen at £125,140 since April 2023. The PA taper between £100,000 and £125,140 (see § 5 below) creates the well-known 60% effective marginal rate band.
| Band | Lower bound | Upper bound | Band width | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Personal Allowance | £0 | £12,570 | £12,570 | 0% |
| Basic rate | £12,571 | £50,270 | £37,700 | 20% |
| Higher rate | £50,271 | £125,140 | £74,870 | 40% |
| Additional rate | £125,141 | — | unbounded | 45% |
2. Income Tax — Scotland
Six bands plus a Top rate. Scotland's bands are different in count and rate but share the same £12,570 PA and the same £125,140 taper end-point. National Insurance is reserved to Westminster and applies UK-wide — see § 3.
| Band | Lower bound | Upper bound | Band width | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Personal Allowance | £0 | £12,570 | £12,570 | 0% |
| Starter rate | £12,571 | £16,537 | £3,967 | 19% |
| Basic rate | £16,538 | £29,526 | £12,989 | 20% |
| Intermediate rate | £29,527 | £43,662 | £14,136 | 21% |
| Higher rate | £43,663 | £75,000 | £31,338 | 42% |
| Advanced rate | £75,001 | £125,140 | £50,140 | 45% |
| Top rate | £125,141 | — | unbounded | 48% |
Between £43,663 and £50,270, Scottish taxpayers face a combined 50% marginal rate — 42% Scottish Higher Rate + 8% UK NI main rate. The trap closes at the NI UEL (£50,270) when NI drops to 2%.
3. Class 1 employee National Insurance — UK-wide
| Band | Lower bound | Upper bound | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below Primary Threshold | £0 | £12,570 | 0% |
| Main rate band | £12,571 | £50,270 | 8% |
| Upper band | £50,271 | — | 2% |
The Secondary Class 1 (employer) rate for 2026/27 is 15%, paid by your employer on most earnings. It does not appear on your payslip — but salary sacrifice into a workplace pension reduces the slice the employer pays it on, and many employers contractually return part or all of that saving to your pension. See /salary-sacrifice.
4. Combined marginal-rate cheat sheet
"Marginal rate" = the percentage of an extra £1 of gross that goes to HMRC. The interesting transitions are listed below. Bold = the well-known traps.
| Income | rUK | Scotland |
|---|---|---|
| ≤ £12,570 | 0% | 0% |
| £12,571 – £16,537 | 28% | 27% |
| £16,538 – £29,526 | 28% | 28% |
| £29,527 – £43,662 | 28% | 29% |
| £43,663 – £50,270 | 28% | 50% |
| £50,271 – £75,000 | 42% | 44% |
| £75,001 – £100,000 | 42% | 47% |
| £100,001 – £125,140 | 62% | 69.5% |
| £125,141 – ∞ | 47% | 50% |
The taper-zone figures (62% rUK, 69.5% Scotland) include the 2% upper-rate NI on top of the underlying 60% / 67.5% income-tax marginal — see § 5.
5. Personal Allowance taper
PA reduces by £1 for every £2 of taxable income above £100,000, hitting zero at £125,140. Effective tax rates on the extra £1 inside that window are:
| Component | rUK | Scotland |
|---|---|---|
| Direct tax on the £1 | 40% | 45% |
| Tax on the 50p of lost PA | 20% × 50p = 10p | 45% × 50p = 22.5p |
| Combined income-tax marginal | 60% | 67.5% |
| + Class 1 upper-rate NI | + 2% | + 2% |
| Total marginal in the trap | 62% | 69.5% |
6. Student loan thresholds
| Plan | Repayment threshold | Rate above threshold | Typical cohort |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plan 1 | £22,015 | 9% | Pre-Sept 2012 (E&W), all years (NI / Scotland) |
| Plan 2 | £27,295 | 9% | Sept 2012 – Aug 2023 (E&W) |
| Plan 5 | £25,000 | 9% | From Sept 2023 (E&W) |
| Postgraduate Loan | £21,000 | 6% | Postgraduate Master's / Doctoral |
7. Other 2026/27 reference values
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Personal Allowance (standard) | £12,570 |
| Marriage Allowance transfer | £1,257 |
| Blind Person's Allowance | £3,130 |
| National Living Wage (21+, per hour) | £12.71 |
| NI Primary Threshold | £12,570 |
| NI Upper Earnings Limit | £50,270 |
| Employer NI (Secondary Class 1) | 15% |
| Pension Annual Allowance (standard) | £60,000 |
| Tapered AA — earnings threshold | £200,000 |
| Tapered AA — adjusted-income threshold | £260,000 |
| Minimum tapered AA | £10,000 |
Apply these bands to a real number: Salary Calculator → · Contractor Rate → · Salary Sacrifice →