What is the UK Personal Allowance for 2026/27?

£12,570 - the tax-free slice of income for 2026/27. Frozen at this level since 6 April 2021 (originally a 5-year freeze announced in Spring Budget 2021, extended in successive budgets, now confirmed frozen through April 2031 (extended at Autumn Budget 2025) by Autumn Budget 2024). The PA covers ALL forms of UK taxable income: employment salary, self-employed trading profit, pension income, rental income (after allowable expenses), taxable savings interest above PSA, taxable dividends above £500 allowance. It's applied to your highest-rate income first, so the £12,570 effectively saves you tax at your marginal rate (£2,514 at 20% basic rate; £5,028 at 40% higher rate).

Why is the £100,000 PA taper called the "60% tax trap"?

Above £100,000 of "adjusted net income" the PA is withdrawn at £1 for every £2 above the threshold. The mechanic: every £1 of extra income causes £0.50 of PA to be lost, exposing £0.50 of previously tax-free income to 40% tax = £0.20 of extra tax. Combined with the direct 40% tax on the £1 itself = 60% effective marginal rate. Add 2% employee NI = 62% combined marginal rate. This is HIGHER than the 45% additional-rate band above £125,140 (47% combined with NI) - a structural quirk where a middle band has a higher marginal rate than the top band. Pension contributions, charity gift aid, and salary sacrifice all reduce ANI £-for-£ - exceptionally valuable in the £100k-£125,140 zone. See our £100k tax trap calculator for detailed math.

What is "adjusted net income" for PA taper purposes?

Total taxable income from all sources MINUS specific deductions. Income included : salary (gross), self-employed profit, rental income, dividends above £500, savings interest above PSA, pension income, foreign income. Deductible from ANI : gross personal pension contributions (including basic-rate added by provider), gift aid donations grossed up by 25%, trading losses. NOT deducted : employer pension contributions via salary sacrifice (already excluded from gross salary), employee NI, ISA contributions, EIS/SEIS investment (different relief). Salary sacrifice into pension is uniquely powerful because the sacrificed amount is excluded from gross salary BEFORE ANI is calculated - it doesn't appear on the payslip as taxable income at all. The same ANI definition is used for HICBC (£60k threshold) and Tax-Free Childcare (£100k cliff) - so optimising one tends to optimise all three.

Can I transfer my Personal Allowance to my spouse?

Yes - the Marriage Allowance lets a non-taxpayer or basic-rate taxpayer transfer up to £1,260 of their unused PA to their spouse or civil partner, saving the higher-earning spouse up to £252/year. Both spouses must be born after 5 April 1935 (those born earlier qualify for the more generous Married Couple's Allowance instead). The TRANSFERRING spouse must have income below £12,570 (so they have unused PA to give); the RECEIVING spouse must be a basic-rate taxpayer (up to £50,270 income) - if they're higher-rate, the transfer is ineffective. Can be backdated 4 years if both spouses were eligible in the prior year. Apply at gov.uk/marriage-allowance. See our UK Marriage Allowance guide for the full mechanism + Scottish rate complications.

What is the Blind Person's Allowance?

An ADDITIONAL £3,250 of tax-free Personal Allowance on top of the standard £12,570 - so total tax-free £15,820 for qualifying claimants. Eligibility: registered as severely sight-impaired (blind) on a local authority register in England and Wales, OR unable to perform any work for which eyesight is essential in Scotland and Northern Ireland. Unlike the standard PA, the BPA IS transferable to a spouse if unused. Uprated annually with CPI (was £2,870 in 2022/23, £3,070 in 2024/25, £3,250 in 2026/27). Apply via your Self Assessment return or by writing to HMRC with a doctor's letter / Certificate of Vision Impairment (CVI).

What is the Married Couple's Allowance?

Different scheme from Marriage Allowance, only available where at least one spouse was born BEFORE 6 April 1935 (so the youngest possible MCA recipient is age 91 in 2026/27). MCA reduces your tax bill by 10% of the allowance amount, not your taxable income. 2026/27 maximum MCA = £11,700 → 10% tax reduction = £1,170/year. Tapered if higher earner's income exceeds £37,700 income limit (separate from £100k PA taper). MCA was introduced 1990 to support couples with at least one elderly spouse, frozen-in-time for pre-1935 births so a steadily shrinking population qualifies. Around 220,000 claimants nationally for 2026/27 (down from 1.2m in 2010). When the eldest claimant dies, MCA can transfer to the surviving spouse.

How does the PA work for self-employed people?

Same allowance, applied to your total taxable income via Self Assessment. Trading profit + dividends + rental + savings interest etc. all aggregated, PA applied to the total. PA does NOT cover Class 2 / Class 4 National Insurance though - separate £12,570 Lower Profits Limit applies to NI (coincidentally the same figure, but it's a different test). So a £15,000 trading profit owes £0 Income Tax (covered by PA) but £146 Class 4 NI 6% × (£15,000 - £12,570) = £146. Class 2 NI is voluntary if profit under £7,105 SPT. For employees who ALSO have self-employed side income, PA is applied to total income across both - if employment uses all the PA, side-hustle income is taxed from £0 upward at marginal rate. See our side hustle tax calculator for the stacking mechanics.

PA for non-UK residents and dual residents

Non-UK-resident individuals are GENERALLY entitled to the PA only if they meet specific conditions (Section 56 ITA 2007). British citizens, EEA nationals, Crown servants overseas, and residents of countries with relevant double-taxation treaties typically still get PA. Non-EEA non-British nationals from non-treaty countries (rare) may lose PA entitlement on UK-source income (rental, employment days in UK, etc.). Dual residents under Statutory Residence Test interaction: PA available only against UK-tax-resident-period income; non-resident-period income gets no PA. The 5% withholding tax under some treaty articles can be less favourable than the PA-deduction-and-tax-band-stacking approach - check treaty position carefully. See our UK residence (SRT) guide for the residence test mechanics.

PA freeze - what is fiscal drag?

The £12,570 PA has been frozen since April 2021. Spring Budget 2021 set the original freeze to April 2026; Autumn Statement 2022 extended it to April 2028 and the Autumn Budget 2025 extended it again to April 2031. Combined with ~25% CPI inflation across 2021-2031 the PA's REAL-TERMS value will have fallen substantially over the freeze period. If indexed with CPI from April 2021, the PA would be approximately £15,800 by April 2026. Resolution Foundation estimates the cumulative fiscal drag effect of the PA + threshold freeze through 2030 to be approximately £100bn of additional tax revenue vs an indexed counter-factual. ~4.4 million additional taxpayers will be pushed into the higher-rate band by 2031 vs an inflation-indexed counter-factual. The PA freeze is the single largest "stealth tax" of the current decade and a structural argument for using salary sacrifice + ISA contributions aggressively to keep income tax-efficient.

Does the PA cover ALL UK taxes or just Income Tax?

Only Income Tax. Other UK taxes use separate thresholds: National Insurance uses Primary Threshold £12,570 for Class 1 (employees), Lower Profits Limit £12,570 for Class 4 (self-employed) - coincidentally the same figure but a SEPARATE test. Capital Gains Tax uses £3,000 Annual Exempt Amount (completely separate, doesn't interact with PA). Dividend tax uses £500 Dividend Allowance (on top of PA - so a non-taxpayer can receive £12,570 income + £500 dividend = £13,070 tax-free). Savings interest uses Personal Savings Allowance £1,000 / £500 / £0 (on top of PA, plus the £5,000 "starting rate for savings" at 0% if non-savings income is below £17,570). Property allowance £1,000 (for rental income). Trading allowance £1,000 (for self-employed income). All these allowances stack on top of the £12,570 PA. A worker with diversified income can receive £12,570 + £500 + £1,000 + £1,000 + £1,000 = £16,070 tax-free combining all the allowances.

How is PA applied across multiple income types?

HMRC's "tax band stacking order" under Section 16 ITA 2007: (1) Non-savings income first - salary, self-employed profit, rental income, pension income; (2) Savings income next - bank interest, gilt interest; (3) Dividend income last. PA is applied to whichever income comes first in the stack. So a £10,000 pensioner with £5,000 of dividend income: pension £10k uses £10k of PA (leaving £2,570 of PA unused for dividends - but dividends have their own £500 allowance separate, so £500 of dividends are tax-free); £4,500 of dividends are taxed at 10.75% basic-rate dividend rate (£394). A higher-rate earner with £80k salary + £5k dividends: PA used entirely by salary, dividends start at higher-rate stack, £500 dividend allowance covers first £500, remaining £4,500 taxed at 35.75%.

Can I check my PA usage for the current tax year?

Yes via HMRC Personal Tax Account at gov.uk/personal-tax-account. Login with Government Gateway credentials. Shows: your current tax code, year-to-date pay + tax deducted from PAYE, projected end-of-year tax position, PA usage. Mid-year you can see whether your tax code reflects the correct PA - common error after job changes is being put on emergency code (1257L M1 or BR) which doesn't reflect cumulative PA. Tax code 1257L corresponds to £12,570 PA. Wrong codes: 1248L (likely company car BIK reduction), 1247K (negative PA when BIK exceeds PA - your tax code starts with K and adds to your taxable income), BR (no PA - all income taxed at basic rate, common for second job), 0T (no PA but bands apply normally, common for emergency code on new starter), D0 (all income at higher rate, for high earners with specific arrangements). See our 1257L tax code meaning and UK emergency tax guide .

UK Personal Allowance (2026/27): £12,570 Tax-Free Threshold

The Personal Allowance for 2026/27 is £12,570 - the slice of income on which you pay no Income Tax. Frozen at this level since April 2021 and confirmed frozen through April 2031 (extended at Autumn Budget 2025), the PA's real-terms value has fallen approximately 20% across the freeze period due to fiscal drag. Above £100,000 of adjusted net income, the PA tapers at £1 for every £2 above, fully withdrawn at £125,140 - producing the UK's notorious 62% combined marginal tax rate (60% IT + 2% NI).

Key 2026/27 figures

Standard PA

£12,570

Frozen since April 2021 → April 2031

Taper threshold

£100,000

£1 PA lost per £2 of ANI above

Fully withdrawn

£125,140

£0 PA. 62% marginal rate band ends here.

PA history - real-terms erosion

Tax year	PA amount	YoY change
2019/20	£12,500	—
2020/21	£12,500	—
2021/22	£12,570	+£70
2022/23	£12,570	—
2023/24	£12,570	—
2024/25	£12,570	—
2025/26	£12,570	—
2026/27 ← current	£12,570	—
2027/28	£12,570	—
2028/29	£12,570	—
2029/30	£12,570	—

With ~25% CPI inflation across 2021-2030, the PA's real-terms value has fallen approximately 20%. If indexed with CPI from April 2021, the PA would be ~£15,800 in 2026/27. Resolution Foundation estimates ~4.4 million additional taxpayers pushed into the higher-rate band by 2031 vs an indexed counter-factual.

5 worked PA usage scenarios

Scenario	Income (ANI)	PA available	PA lost
Low earner, full PA Single income source. Full PA covers first £12,570. Tax on £5,430 at 20% = £1,086.	£18,000	£12,570	£0
Higher-rate just under £100k Full PA preserved. £37,700 at 20% + £44,730 at 40%. PA still intact.	£95,000	£12,570	£0
PA taper zone start ANI £105k → PA reduces by £1 per £2 above £100k = £2,500 lost. Effective marginal rate 60% in this band.	£105,000	£10,070	£2,500
PA taper mid-zone PA cut to £5,070. £7,500 of taxable income exposed to 40% IT = £3,000 extra tax purely from PA loss.	£115,000	£5,070	£7,500
PA fully withdrawn £0 PA. All income taxable. £125,140 to £130k at 45% additional rate (£2,187 tax just in additional-rate band).	£130,000	£0	£12,570

£100,000 - £125,140 taper detail

Adjusted net income	Available PA	Combined marginal rate
Up to £100,000	£12,570	42% (40% IT + 2% NI)
£100,001 - £125,140	£12,569 → £0	62% (60% IT + 2% NI)
£125,141+	£0	47% (45% IT + 2% NI)

The 62% taper zone has a HIGHER marginal rate than the 47% additional-rate band above £125,140 - one of the most counterintuitive features of the UK personal-tax stack. Pension contributions, salary sacrifice, and charity gift aid all reduce ANI £-for-£ and are exceptionally valuable in this band.

PA family - related allowances

Standard Personal Allowance: £12,570 for all UK taxpayers. Frozen since April 2021.
Marriage Allowance: transfer £1,260 of unused PA to spouse, max saving £252/year. Both spouses born after April 1935. See UK Marriage Allowance guide.
Blind Person's Allowance: additional £3,250 on top of standard PA. Transferable to spouse if unused.
Married Couple's Allowance: max £11,700 for couples where at least one spouse born before 6 April 1935. 10% tax reduction structure (not income reduction).
Personal Savings Allowance: £1,000 basic-rate / £500 higher-rate / £0 additional-rate. See PSA guide.
Dividend Allowance: £500 for all taxpayers. See dividend allowance guide.
Starting Rate for Savings: £5,000 at 0% if non-savings income under £17,570.
Trading Allowance: £1,000 of self-employed gross income tax-free. See side hustle tax calc.
Property Allowance: £1,000 of rental gross income tax-free.

Frequently asked questions

What is the UK Personal Allowance for 2026/27?: £12,570 - the tax-free slice of income for 2026/27. Frozen at this level since 6 April 2021 (originally a 5-year freeze announced in Spring Budget 2021, extended in successive budgets, now confirmed frozen through April 2031 (extended at Autumn Budget 2025) by Autumn Budget 2024). The PA covers ALL forms of UK taxable income: employment salary, self-employed trading profit, pension income, rental income (after allowable expenses), taxable savings interest above PSA, taxable dividends above £500 allowance. It's applied to your highest-rate income first, so the £12,570 effectively saves you tax at your marginal rate (£2,514 at 20% basic rate; £5,028 at 40% higher rate).
Why is the £100,000 PA taper called the "60% tax trap"?: Above £100,000 of "adjusted net income" the PA is withdrawn at £1 for every £2 above the threshold. The mechanic: every £1 of extra income causes £0.50 of PA to be lost, exposing £0.50 of previously tax-free income to 40% tax = £0.20 of extra tax. Combined with the direct 40% tax on the £1 itself = 60% effective marginal rate. Add 2% employee NI = 62% combined marginal rate. This is HIGHER than the 45% additional-rate band above £125,140 (47% combined with NI) - a structural quirk where a middle band has a higher marginal rate than the top band. Pension contributions, charity gift aid, and salary sacrifice all reduce ANI £-for-£ - exceptionally valuable in the £100k-£125,140 zone. See our £100k tax trap calculator for detailed math.
What is "adjusted net income" for PA taper purposes?: Total taxable income from all sources MINUS specific deductions. Income included: salary (gross), self-employed profit, rental income, dividends above £500, savings interest above PSA, pension income, foreign income. Deductible from ANI: gross personal pension contributions (including basic-rate added by provider), gift aid donations grossed up by 25%, trading losses. NOT deducted: employer pension contributions via salary sacrifice (already excluded from gross salary), employee NI, ISA contributions, EIS/SEIS investment (different relief). Salary sacrifice into pension is uniquely powerful because the sacrificed amount is excluded from gross salary BEFORE ANI is calculated - it doesn't appear on the payslip as taxable income at all. The same ANI definition is used for HICBC (£60k threshold) and Tax-Free Childcare (£100k cliff) - so optimising one tends to optimise all three.
Can I transfer my Personal Allowance to my spouse?: Yes - the Marriage Allowance lets a non-taxpayer or basic-rate taxpayer transfer up to £1,260 of their unused PA to their spouse or civil partner, saving the higher-earning spouse up to £252/year. Both spouses must be born after 5 April 1935 (those born earlier qualify for the more generous Married Couple's Allowance instead). The TRANSFERRING spouse must have income below £12,570 (so they have unused PA to give); the RECEIVING spouse must be a basic-rate taxpayer (up to £50,270 income) - if they're higher-rate, the transfer is ineffective. Can be backdated 4 years if both spouses were eligible in the prior year. Apply at gov.uk/marriage-allowance. See our UK Marriage Allowance guide for the full mechanism + Scottish rate complications.
What is the Blind Person's Allowance?: An ADDITIONAL £3,250 of tax-free Personal Allowance on top of the standard £12,570 - so total tax-free £15,820 for qualifying claimants. Eligibility: registered as severely sight-impaired (blind) on a local authority register in England and Wales, OR unable to perform any work for which eyesight is essential in Scotland and Northern Ireland. Unlike the standard PA, the BPA IS transferable to a spouse if unused. Uprated annually with CPI (was £2,870 in 2022/23, £3,070 in 2024/25, £3,250 in 2026/27). Apply via your Self Assessment return or by writing to HMRC with a doctor's letter / Certificate of Vision Impairment (CVI).
What is the Married Couple's Allowance?: Different scheme from Marriage Allowance, only available where at least one spouse was born BEFORE 6 April 1935 (so the youngest possible MCA recipient is age 91 in 2026/27). MCA reduces your tax bill by 10% of the allowance amount, not your taxable income. 2026/27 maximum MCA = £11,700 → 10% tax reduction = £1,170/year. Tapered if higher earner's income exceeds £37,700 income limit (separate from £100k PA taper). MCA was introduced 1990 to support couples with at least one elderly spouse, frozen-in-time for pre-1935 births so a steadily shrinking population qualifies. Around 220,000 claimants nationally for 2026/27 (down from 1.2m in 2010). When the eldest claimant dies, MCA can transfer to the surviving spouse.
How does the PA work for self-employed people?: Same allowance, applied to your total taxable income via Self Assessment. Trading profit + dividends + rental + savings interest etc. all aggregated, PA applied to the total. PA does NOT cover Class 2 / Class 4 National Insurance though - separate £12,570 Lower Profits Limit applies to NI (coincidentally the same figure, but it's a different test). So a £15,000 trading profit owes £0 Income Tax (covered by PA) but £146 Class 4 NI 6% × (£15,000 - £12,570) = £146. Class 2 NI is voluntary if profit under £7,105 SPT. For employees who ALSO have self-employed side income, PA is applied to total income across both - if employment uses all the PA, side-hustle income is taxed from £0 upward at marginal rate. See our side hustle tax calculator for the stacking mechanics.
PA for non-UK residents and dual residents: Non-UK-resident individuals are GENERALLY entitled to the PA only if they meet specific conditions (Section 56 ITA 2007). British citizens, EEA nationals, Crown servants overseas, and residents of countries with relevant double-taxation treaties typically still get PA. Non-EEA non-British nationals from non-treaty countries (rare) may lose PA entitlement on UK-source income (rental, employment days in UK, etc.). Dual residents under Statutory Residence Test interaction: PA available only against UK-tax-resident-period income; non-resident-period income gets no PA. The 5% withholding tax under some treaty articles can be less favourable than the PA-deduction-and-tax-band-stacking approach - check treaty position carefully. See our UK residence (SRT) guide for the residence test mechanics.
PA freeze - what is fiscal drag?: The £12,570 PA has been frozen since April 2021. Spring Budget 2021 set the original freeze to April 2026; Autumn Statement 2022 extended it to April 2028 and the Autumn Budget 2025 extended it again to April 2031. Combined with ~25% CPI inflation across 2021-2031 the PA's REAL-TERMS value will have fallen substantially over the freeze period. If indexed with CPI from April 2021, the PA would be approximately £15,800 by April 2026. Resolution Foundation estimates the cumulative fiscal drag effect of the PA + threshold freeze through 2030 to be approximately £100bn of additional tax revenue vs an indexed counter-factual. ~4.4 million additional taxpayers will be pushed into the higher-rate band by 2031 vs an inflation-indexed counter-factual. The PA freeze is the single largest "stealth tax" of the current decade and a structural argument for using salary sacrifice + ISA contributions aggressively to keep income tax-efficient.
Does the PA cover ALL UK taxes or just Income Tax?: Only Income Tax. Other UK taxes use separate thresholds: National Insurance uses Primary Threshold £12,570 for Class 1 (employees), Lower Profits Limit £12,570 for Class 4 (self-employed) - coincidentally the same figure but a SEPARATE test. Capital Gains Tax uses £3,000 Annual Exempt Amount (completely separate, doesn't interact with PA). Dividend tax uses £500 Dividend Allowance (on top of PA - so a non-taxpayer can receive £12,570 income + £500 dividend = £13,070 tax-free). Savings interest uses Personal Savings Allowance £1,000 / £500 / £0 (on top of PA, plus the £5,000 "starting rate for savings" at 0% if non-savings income is below £17,570). Property allowance £1,000 (for rental income). Trading allowance £1,000 (for self-employed income). All these allowances stack on top of the £12,570 PA. A worker with diversified income can receive £12,570 + £500 + £1,000 + £1,000 + £1,000 = £16,070 tax-free combining all the allowances.
How is PA applied across multiple income types?: HMRC's "tax band stacking order" under Section 16 ITA 2007: (1) Non-savings income first - salary, self-employed profit, rental income, pension income; (2) Savings income next - bank interest, gilt interest; (3) Dividend income last. PA is applied to whichever income comes first in the stack. So a £10,000 pensioner with £5,000 of dividend income: pension £10k uses £10k of PA (leaving £2,570 of PA unused for dividends - but dividends have their own £500 allowance separate, so £500 of dividends are tax-free); £4,500 of dividends are taxed at 10.75% basic-rate dividend rate (£394). A higher-rate earner with £80k salary + £5k dividends: PA used entirely by salary, dividends start at higher-rate stack, £500 dividend allowance covers first £500, remaining £4,500 taxed at 35.75%.
Can I check my PA usage for the current tax year?: Yes via HMRC Personal Tax Account at gov.uk/personal-tax-account. Login with Government Gateway credentials. Shows: your current tax code, year-to-date pay + tax deducted from PAYE, projected end-of-year tax position, PA usage. Mid-year you can see whether your tax code reflects the correct PA - common error after job changes is being put on emergency code (1257L M1 or BR) which doesn't reflect cumulative PA. Tax code 1257L corresponds to £12,570 PA. Wrong codes: 1248L (likely company car BIK reduction), 1247K (negative PA when BIK exceeds PA - your tax code starts with K and adds to your taxable income), BR (no PA - all income taxed at basic rate, common for second job), 0T (no PA but bands apply normally, common for emergency code on new starter), D0 (all income at higher rate, for high earners with specific arrangements). See our 1257L tax code meaning and UK emergency tax guide.