High earners · pension savings

Pension annual allowance calculator: have I gone over?

Q: What is the pension annual allowance for 2026/27?

The standard annual allowance is 60,000 pounds for 2026/27, the most that can be paid into all your pensions in the tax year (your contributions, your employer's, and anyone else's on your behalf) before a tax charge applies. If you are a high earner it can be tapered down to as little as 10,000 pounds, and if you have flexibly accessed a defined contribution pension a separate 10,000 pound Money Purchase Annual Allowance may apply instead.

Q: How is the tapered annual allowance calculated?

The taper applies only if your threshold income is over 200,000 pounds and your adjusted income is over 260,000 pounds. When both are true, your 60,000 pound allowance is reduced by 1 pound for every 2 pounds of adjusted income above 260,000 pounds, down to a minimum of 10,000 pounds. That floor is reached once your adjusted income hits 360,000 pounds. If your threshold income is 200,000 pounds or less, there is no taper regardless of your adjusted income.

Q: What happens if I go over the annual allowance?

The amount you paid in above your available allowance, this year's allowance plus any carry-forward, is added to your taxable income and taxed at your marginal Income Tax rate. You report it in the pension savings tax charges section of your Self Assessment return (form SA101 on paper), even if your pension scheme pays some or all of the charge for you under scheme pays.

There's a limit on how much can go into your pensions each year before a tax charge kicks in — the annual allowance, £60,000 for 2026/27. If you're a high earner it can be tapered down to as little as £10,000. Put in what was paid in and your income, and see whether you're over and what the charge would be.

Your pension savings this year

Rough figures are fine. Nothing is sent anywhere; this runs entirely in your browser.

Total paid into your pensions your contributions + your employer's + anyone paying in for you, this tax year

Adjusted income roughly your taxable income plus all pension input — the figure the taper is based on

Threshold income roughly your taxable income minus your own contributions — leave blank if it's under £200,000

Unused allowance carried forward from the previous 3 tax years, if any — leave blank if none

Your top Income Tax rate the rate any excess is taxed at — usually your highest band

How the annual allowance works for 2026/27

The annual allowance is the most that can be paid into all your pensions in a tax year before a tax charge applies — £60,000 for 2026/27. It counts everything: your own contributions, your employer's, and anyone else paying in on your behalf. If the total goes above your available allowance, the excess is added to your taxable income and taxed at your marginal rate.

High earners: the tapered allowance

If your threshold income is over £200,000 and your adjusted income is over £260,000, your £60,000 allowance is cut by £1 for every £2 of adjusted income above £260,000 — down to a floor of £10,000, which you hit at £360,000 of adjusted income. The £200,000 threshold-income test is a hard gate: if you're at or below it, there's no taper at all, however high your adjusted income.

Before you assume you're over

The charge only bites on pension input above your available allowance — and that's often larger than the headline number:

You can carry forward unused allowance from the previous three tax years, on top of this year's — a big buffer if you paid in less than the allowance recently
Employer contributions count towards the allowance, but they also push up your adjusted income, which is what can trigger the taper
A personal pension contribution lowers your threshold income — sometimes back under £200,000, switching the taper off entirely
Once you've flexibly accessed a defined-contribution pension, a separate £10,000 Money Purchase Annual Allowance applies to further DC saving — that's not modelled here
Paying into a pension is also how earners between £100,000 and £125,140 escape the 60% trap — the £100k tax trap calculator shows that saving

More free tools

Pension tax relief →How much higher-rate relief a pension contribution gets you back. The £100k tax trap →Why £100k–£125,140 is taxed at 60%, and how a pension undoes it. Pension lump sum tax →25% tax-free, and the tax on the rest when you draw it. Self Assessment tax calculator →Your whole bill, with pension relief folded in.

Common questions

What is the pension annual allowance for 2026/27?

The standard annual allowance is £60,000 for 2026/27 — the most that can be paid into all your pensions in the tax year (your contributions, your employer's, and anyone else's on your behalf) before a tax charge applies. If you're a high earner it can be tapered down to as little as £10,000, and if you've flexibly accessed a defined contribution pension a separate £10,000 Money Purchase Annual Allowance may apply instead.

How is the tapered annual allowance calculated?

The taper applies only if your threshold income is over £200,000 and your adjusted income is over £260,000. When both are true, your £60,000 allowance is reduced by £1 for every £2 of adjusted income above £260,000, down to a minimum of £10,000. That floor is reached once your adjusted income hits £360,000. If your threshold income is £200,000 or less, there is no taper regardless of your adjusted income.

What's the difference between threshold income and adjusted income?

Broadly, threshold income is your total taxable income less your own pension contributions, and adjusted income is your total taxable income plus all pension input including your employer's. Threshold income is the £200,000 gate that decides whether the taper applies at all; adjusted income is the £260,000 measure that decides how far the allowance is reduced. The exact definitions have extra steps — the calculator uses these broad figures.

What happens if I go over the annual allowance?

The amount you paid in above your available allowance — this year's allowance plus any carry-forward — is added to your taxable income and taxed at your marginal Income Tax rate. You report it in the pension savings tax charges section of your Self Assessment return (form SA101 on paper), even if your pension scheme pays some or all of the charge for you under "scheme pays".

Can I still carry forward unused allowance?

Yes. Your available allowance is this year's allowance plus any unused allowance from the previous three tax years, provided you were a member of a registered pension scheme in those years. You use the current year's allowance first, then the oldest unused year. Carry forward can wipe out a charge entirely, which is why the calculator lets you enter it.

See the whole picture before 31 January

This page checks one limit. The paid Self Assessment Tax Estimator models your whole year — salary, any freelancing or side income, pension contributions and the relief on them together — so you can see your real tax bill to the penny, plan a pension top-up to soak up carry-forward, and know exactly what to declare before the deadline.

Self Assessment Tax Estimator 2026/27 — your whole bill, with pension relief applied, plus the monthly set-aside and payment-on-account dates worked out for you.
Freelance Day-Rate & Profit Calculator — work backwards from the take-home you need.
Rental Property ROI & Yield Calculator — for anyone with a buy-to-let alongside.
Invoice Tracker & Log — paid, outstanding and overdue, automatically.

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