Pension Tax Relief Calculator UK — 2026/27
Set one gross amount you want directed to a pension. Compare relief at source, net pay and salary sacrifice on the same basis, including the provider addition, further relief that may need claiming, employee NI, employer NI sharing, adjusted net income and allowance checks.
Published by GrowThenDraw Editorial Team · Editorial policy · Methodology & sources
No personal-contribution earnings excess or entered annual-allowance excess in this scenario.
| Method | Paid / salary given up | Provider adds | Further claim | Income Tax effect | Employee NI saved | Employer NI added | Pension added | Take-home cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Relief at source | £8,000.00 | £2,000.00 | £1,946.00 | £3,946.00 | £0.00 | £0.00 | £10,000.00 | £6,054.00 |
| Net pay | £10,000.00 | £0.00 | £0.00 | £3,946.00 | £0.00 | £0.00 | £10,000.00 | £6,054.00 |
| Salary sacrifice | £10,000.00 | £0.00 | £0.00 | £3,946.00 | £216.20 | £750.00 | £10,750.00 | £5,837.80 |
Understand all three routes
See what is automatic, what may need claiming and why NI differs.
Open the salary-sacrifice audit
Carry the pay, sacrifice and employer NI assumption into the detailed tool.
Test taper, MPAA and carry forward
Carry the planned money-purchase input into the three-year allowance audit.
Audit HICBC and both partners
Use the adjusted-net-income result in the dedicated Child Benefit charge tool.
Start with the gross pension target, not three incomparable deductions
A £10,000 gross pension contribution can appear as an £8,000 payment under relief at source, a £10,000 pre-tax payroll deduction under net pay, or £10,000 of contractual cash salary exchanged under salary sacrifice. Comparing the numbers printed on a bank statement or payslip without translating them to one gross target is misleading.
This calculator holds the gross target constant. It then shows what leaves cash pay, what reaches the pension and which parts arise from the provider, Income Tax, employee National Insurance or optional employer NI sharing.
Relief at source can create a separate HMRC claim
For relief at source, the provider normally claims 20% of the gross contribution from HMRC. That means a visitor pays £80 for £100 to reach the pension. If the contribution relieves income taxed above 20%, further relief may be due through HMRC rather than added to the pension by the provider.
The model estimates that further amount from entered non-savings income and the selected UK region. It does not call the estimate an automatic refund: tax codes, Self Assessment, other reliefs and the income mix can change the route and final liability.
Net pay and salary sacrifice are not the same payroll method
A net-pay contribution is normally deducted before Income Tax but after National Insurance. A successful salary sacrifice changes contractual cash salary and is replaced by an employer pension contribution, so current employee and employer NI can also fall. Employer NI sharing is optional and must be entered rather than assumed.
The salary-sacrifice column is an annualised category-A comparison. It does not test National Minimum Wage, a scheme's contract, statutory-pay effects or the announced April 2029 NI change. Use the connected specialist calculator for those checks.
Tax relief and annual allowance are separate limits
Tax relief on an individual's personal contributions is normally limited by relevant UK earnings, with the separate £3,600 gross floor applying when that is higher. Employer contributions, including salary sacrifice, do not use that personal earnings limit in the same way.
All pension input can still matter for the annual allowance. The standard figure is £60,000, but taper, the money purchase annual allowance, carry forward and defined-benefit input can change it. The available-allowance field is an audit input, not an eligibility or annual-allowance-charge decision.
Frequently asked questions
Why does £8,000 become £10,000 under relief at source?
The provider normally claims £2,000 basic-rate relief from HMRC and adds it to an £8,000 net payment. The provider addition is 20% of the £10,000 gross amount, which is 25% of the amount the visitor pays.
Do higher-rate taxpayers get all pension tax relief automatically?
Not always. In a relief-at-source scheme the provider normally adds basic-rate relief. Further UK or Scottish relief may need to be claimed from HMRC. Net-pay arrangements normally give Income Tax relief through payroll, while salary sacrifice is an employer contribution arrangement.
Does net pay save National Insurance?
Normally no. Net pay reduces pay used for Income Tax but usually does not reduce National Insurance earnings. A successful salary-sacrifice arrangement can reduce current employee and employer NI because contractual cash salary is lower.
Can a pension contribution restore my Personal Allowance?
A gross personal pension contribution can reduce adjusted net income, and a successful salary sacrifice reduces cash earnings. The standard Personal Allowance is tapered above £100,000, so the modeled tax effect can include restored allowance as well as ordinary marginal-rate relief.
What is the relevant UK earnings limit?
For personal contributions, tax relief is normally limited to the higher of relevant UK earnings and £3,600 gross for the tax year. Rental income, dividends and pensions are not automatically relevant earnings. Employer contributions use different rules.
Does the calculator prove I have annual allowance available?
No. It compares planned input with the available amount entered. Taper, the MPAA, carry forward, other schemes and defined-benefit growth require a fuller annual-allowance audit using scheme records.
Rules and methodology verified 2026-08-11:
- GOV.UK: relief at source, further UK/Scottish relief and personal-contribution limits
- GOV.UK: workplace pension net-pay and relief-at-source methods
- HMRC: adjusted net income and grossed-up pension contributions
- HMRC: pension-scheme rates and annual allowance
- HMRC: 2026/27 employee and employer NI rates and thresholds
Scope: one 2026/27 tax year; entered employment and other non-savings income; England/Wales/Northern Ireland or Scottish non-savings Income Tax; the same gross pension target under relief at source, net pay and current salary-sacrifice treatment; annualised category-A NI for the salary-sacrifice comparison; entered relevant earnings and allowance capacity.
Excludes savings/dividend tax, PAYE codes, Marriage Allowance, Blind Person's Allowance, Gift Aid already made, benefits, student loans, exact pay-period payroll, directors, multiple jobs, other NI letters, statutory pay, scheme/employer eligibility, National Minimum Wage, DB valuation, taper/MPAA determination, annual-allowance charge, Scheme Pays, investment results, future rules and personalised advice. Educational estimate only, not financial, pension, tax, payroll or employment-law advice.