Tax News and Changes
A concise log of UK tax changes that affect our calculators, and what they mean for you.
Tax year 2026/27 · Estimates, not personal tax advice
6 April 2026
2026/27 tax year begins
Personal Allowance and UK Income Tax thresholds remain frozen at £12,570, £50,270 and £125,140. Our calculators now default to 2026/27.
2026/27 tax rates6 April 2026
Dividend tax rates rise by 2 percentage points
The ordinary rate moves from 8.75% to 10.75% and the upper rate from 33.75% to 35.75%. The additional rate stays at 39.35%. Company directors taking dividends will see higher personal tax bills.
Dividend tax calculator6 April 2026
Student loan thresholds change and Plan 5 repayments start
Plan 1 rises to £26,900, Plan 2 to £29,385 and Plan 4 to £33,795. The first Plan 5 borrowers start repaying above £25,000.
Student loan calculator6 April 2026
Scottish starter and basic thresholds raised
The 20% basic rate now starts at £16,538 and the 21% intermediate rate at £29,527. Higher and advanced thresholds are unchanged.
Scotland tax calculator6 April 2026
Making Tax Digital for Income Tax begins
Sole traders and landlords with qualifying income over £50,000 must keep digital records and send quarterly updates. The threshold falls to £30,000 from April 2027.
Self-employed tax guideAnnounced for April 2029
Cap on NI-free pension salary sacrifice
The government plans to limit National Insurance relief on pension salary sacrifice to the first £2,000 a year. Income Tax relief is unaffected.
Salary sacrifice guide
Changes are based on GOV.UK announcements and legislation. Where a change is announced but not yet in force, check the official source before relying on it.
An announcement is not a current deduction
The effective date matters as much as the headline. A proposed future change should not be applied to a current payslip simply because it appears in the news. Compare the date here with the tax year selected in your calculator.
Which changes matter to your estimate?
A dividend change affects a different calculation from an employee NI change. Follow the tool or guide attached to the relevant item, rather than assuming every announcement changes your take-home pay. The tax-year tables keep the configured figures together.