UK pension annual allowance calculator (with tapering)

Check your UK pension annual allowance and whether high income tapers it, from threshold income and adjusted income, using dated GOV.UK and HMRC limits for 2026/27 and 2025/26.

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Valid for United Kingdom tax year 2026/27 (6 April 2026 to 5 April 2027). Source: official GOV.UK and HMRC pages, linked below. Reviewed on 18 October 2026. It does not include carry forward of unused allowance from earlier years. Choose the previous tax year to see its figures instead. Estimate, not advice.

Tax year

Each tax year has its own dated figures, shown on this page with a review date. Pick the previous year to compare.

Net income (£)

Taxable income for the tax year less reliefs, before the Personal Allowance. For employees on a net pay arrangement, the pension contribution has already come off it.

Pay given up under salary sacrifice or flexible remuneration (£)

Only arrangements made after 8 July 2015. It is added back when working out threshold income.

Gross contributions paid with relief at source (£)

What you paid into the scheme plus the basic rate tax relief the scheme claimed. It is taken off to get threshold income.

Contributions you paid under a net pay arrangement (£)

Taken from pay before tax, so they have already reduced net income. They are added back to get adjusted income.

Relief claimed on a tax return for contributions (£)

Relief claimed under section 193(4) or 194(1) of the Finance Act 2004 for contributions paid before relief was given. Added back to adjusted income.

Lump sum death benefits taxable as pension income (£)

Taken off both threshold income and adjusted income.

Total pension savings in the year, all schemes (£)

The pension input amounts on your annual statements: everything paid in by you, your employer and anyone else, or the increase in value of a defined benefit pension.

Of that, paid by you or others but not your employer (£)

Your own contributions to all registered schemes (relief at source ones at the gross amount) plus anything a third party paid for you. The rest is treated as employer savings and added to adjusted income.

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A clear answer. Here’s how.

The standard annual allowance is £60,000 in 2026/27. It is reduced (tapered) only if both tests are met: threshold income over £200,000 and adjusted income over £260,000. Threshold income is net income plus salary sacrifice, less gross relief-at-source contributions and lump sum death benefits. Adjusted income is net income plus relief claims and net pay contributions plus the employer’s pension savings (total pension savings less member contributions), less lump sum death benefits. The allowance is then cut by £1 for every £2 of adjusted income over the limit, rounded down to the pound, but never below £10,000. Pension savings above the result are shown. The method is tested against the worked examples in HMRC’s Pensions Tax Manual, which use older limits.

What this does not include

Carry forward. Unused annual allowance from the previous three tax years can cover savings above this year’s allowance, so an amount shown above it may not be taxable.
The money purchase annual allowance (after flexibly accessing a pension), the alternative annual allowance, Scheme Pays and the anti-avoidance rule for the tapered allowance.
Working out pension input amounts. For defined benefit schemes take the figure from your pension savings statement; the tool does not value the increase in a defined benefit pension.
The Income Tax on any amount above the allowance (it is added to your taxable income and taxed at your rate) and the Self Assessment reporting of it.
Net income itself: it needs your whole tax position (employment, self-employment, savings, dividends, property and pensions, less reliefs). Ask an adviser or use your tax return figure.
Pension tax relief limits on contributions (100% of earnings), the lump sum allowance and years before 2025/26.

How this is checked

3 reference checks passed These 3 cases were run when this page was built, on 20 October 2026, and all reproduce within the stated tolerance. The same cases are part of the automated tests that run on every change to Toolmoz. Engine version 1.

See the checks and where each expected answer comes from

Case 1
Inputs
Tax year 2026-27Net income (£) 250000Pay given up under salary sacrifice or flexible remuneration (£) 0Gross contributions paid with relief at source (£) 0Lump sum death benefits taxable as pension income (£) 0Relief claimed on a tax return for contributions (£) 0Contributions you paid under a net pay arrangement (£) 20000Total pension savings in the year, all schemes (£) 60000Of that, paid by you or others but not your employer (£) 20000
Expected, and what Toolmoz gave
Threshold income expected 250000, Toolmoz 250000Adjusted income expected 310000, Toolmoz 310000Reduction to the annual allowance expected 25000, Toolmoz 25000Annual allowance for the year expected 35000, Toolmoz 35000Pension savings above the allowance expected 25000, Toolmoz 25000
Where the expected answer comes from
GOV.UK: Work out your reduced (tapered) annual allowance
Allowed difference
exact
Case 2
Inputs
Tax year 2026-27Net income (£) 400000Pay given up under salary sacrifice or flexible remuneration (£) 0Gross contributions paid with relief at source (£) 0Lump sum death benefits taxable as pension income (£) 0Relief claimed on a tax return for contributions (£) 0Contributions you paid under a net pay arrangement (£) 0Total pension savings in the year, all schemes (£) 15000Of that, paid by you or others but not your employer (£) 0
Expected, and what Toolmoz gave
Annual allowance for the year expected 10000, Toolmoz 10000Pension savings above the allowance expected 5000, Toolmoz 5000
Where the expected answer comes from
HMRC: Pension schemes rates
Allowed difference
exact
Case 3
Inputs
Tax year 2025-26Net income (£) 190000Pay given up under salary sacrifice or flexible remuneration (£) 0Gross contributions paid with relief at source (£) 0Lump sum death benefits taxable as pension income (£) 0Relief claimed on a tax return for contributions (£) 0Contributions you paid under a net pay arrangement (£) 0Total pension savings in the year, all schemes (£) 90000Of that, paid by you or others but not your employer (£) 0
Expected, and what Toolmoz gave
Taper applies expected No, Toolmoz NoAnnual allowance for the year expected 60000, Toolmoz 60000Pension savings above the allowance expected 30000, Toolmoz 30000
Where the expected answer comes from
HMRC: Pension schemes rates
Allowed difference
exact

What this shows: the engine reproduces independently worked values for these cases. It does not prove every possible input is right. To test an answer you were given, see how to check a number; to see what is and is not checked across Toolmoz, see the accuracy ledger.

See a worked example

Worked example

A fixed demonstration, separate from the values you enter above.

Tax year: 2026/27 (6 April 2026 to 5 April 2027)
Net income (£): 250000
Pay given up under salary sacrifice or flexible remuneration (£): 0
Gross contributions paid with relief at source (£): 0
Contributions you paid under a net pay arrangement (£): 20000
Relief claimed on a tax return for contributions (£): 0
Lump sum death benefits taxable as pension income (£): 0
Total pension savings in the year, all schemes (£): 60000
Of that, paid by you or others but not your employer (£): 20000

Example result

First 5 rows of the example result
Item	Amount (£)
Threshold income (taper applies only above £200,000)	250,000
Adjusted income (taper applies only above £260,000)	310,000
Reduction to the annual allowance	25,000
Annual allowance for the year	35,000
Pension savings in the year	60,000

Valid for United Kingdom tax year 2026/27 (6 April 2026 to 5 April 2027). Source: official GOV.UK and HMRC pages, linked below. Reviewed on 18 October 2026. These are the rules in force today. Both income tests are met, so the allowance is reduced by £1 for every £2 of adjusted income over £260,000, rounded down, but not below £10,000. Unused allowance from the previous three tax years (carry forward) is not included, and it could cover some or all of the amount above. Estimate only, not tax, legal or financial advice: see what is not included below.