U
UK Tax Tools

UK Tax Year Changes

Track how UK tax rules change each year. See what’s different for income tax, National Insurance, capital gains, and more.

2026-27

Income tax thresholds remain frozen while employer NI stays at the higher 15% rate introduced in April 2025.

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Income tax thresholds remain frozen

Negative

The Personal Allowance stays at £12,570 and the higher rate threshold at £50,270, continuing the freeze that started in 2021.

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Employer NI rate stays at 15%

Negative

The employer NI rate remains at 15% with the £5,000 secondary threshold, introduced in April 2025.

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Capital gains tax rates unchanged

Neutral

CGT rates remain at 18% (basic) and 24% (higher) for most assets after the October 2024 increases.

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Dividend allowance stays at £500

Neutral

The tax-free dividend allowance remains at £500, down from £2,000 in 2022-23.

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Employment Allowance at £10,500

Positive

Small businesses can reduce their employer NI bill by up to £10,500, increased from £5,000.

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Scottish Starter and Basic bands uplifted

Positive

Rates unchanged (19% to 48%) but Scottish Budget 2026-27 uplifted the Starter band by 40% and the Basic band by 7.4%. Starter now runs to £16,537 and Basic to £29,526. Intermediate, Higher, Advanced and Top thresholds remain frozen.

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2025-26 — Major employer NI increase to 15%, frozen income tax thresholds, and CGT rate rises took effect.

Employer NI increased to 15%

Negative

Employer NI rose from 13.8% to 15%, with the secondary threshold cut from £9,100 to £5,000.

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Income tax thresholds still frozen

Negative

Personal Allowance and rate thresholds remain unchanged, pulling more earnings into higher bands.

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Capital gains tax rates increased

Negative

Lower rate rose from 10% to 18%, higher rate from 20% to 24% for most assets.

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Child Benefit HICBC thresholds raised

Positive

HICBC now starts at £60,000 (up from £50,000) with a tapered clawback to £80,000.

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2024-25 — Employee NI cut to 8%, dividend allowance halved to £500, and CGT annual exempt amount reduced.

Employee NI cut to 8%

Positive

Employee NI main rate reduced from 12% to 8% (via two cuts in January and April 2024).

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Dividend allowance halved to £500

Negative

Tax-free dividend allowance dropped from £1,000 to £500.

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CGT annual exempt amount cut to £3,000

Negative

The capital gains tax-free allowance dropped from £6,000 to £3,000.

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Compare Your Tax

See exactly how much more or less you’ll take home by comparing two tax years side by side.

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Related Calculators

Last updated March 2026. Covers 2026-27, 2025-26, and 2024-25 tax years.

Last updated 18 April 2026Tax year 2025-26

Data sources: HMRC (gov.uk/hmrc)

This tool is general information only, not financial advice.

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