National Insurance Rates 2026/27 — Complete UK Guide
Full breakdown of National Insurance rates and thresholds for 2026/27 tax year. Employee, employer, and self-employed NI rates, plus worked examples showing how much you'll pay.
·5 min read
National Insurance funds your State Pension and other benefits. Here are the complete rates and thresholds for the 2026/27 tax year (6 April 2026 to 5 April 2027).
National Insurance Rates 2026/27 — Quick Reference
Employee NI (Class 1)
Earnings
NI Rate
Up to £12,570/year
0%
£12,571 to £50,270/year
8%
Over £50,270/year
2%
Self-Employed NI (Class 4)
Profits
NI Rate
Up to £12,570/year
0%
£12,571 to £50,270/year
6%
Over £50,270/year
2%
Employer NI (Class 1 Secondary)
Earnings
NI Rate
Up to £5,000/year
0%
Over £5,000/year
15%
Key Thresholds 2026/27
Threshold
Annual
Monthly
Weekly
Lower Earnings Limit (LEL)
£6,396
£533
£123
Primary Threshold (PT)
£12,570
£1,048
£242
Secondary Threshold (ST)
£5,000
£417
£96
Upper Earnings Limit (UEL)
£50,270
£4,189
£967
Upper Secondary Threshold (under 21)
£50,270
£4,189
£967
What Changed from 2025/26?
Change
2025/26
2026/27
Employee NI rate
8%
8% (unchanged)
Self-employed NI rate
6%
6% (unchanged)
Primary Threshold
£12,570
£12,570 (frozen)
Upper Earnings Limit
£50,270
£50,270 (frozen)
Employer NI rate
13.8%
15% (increased)
Secondary Threshold
£9,100
£5,000 (reduced)
Key change: Employer NI increased significantly in the October 2024 Budget. The rate rose from 13.8% to 15%, and the threshold dropped from £9,100 to £5,000. This doesn’t affect your take-home pay directly, but may impact wage growth and hiring.
How Employee NI Is Calculated
Example: £35,000 Salary
Step
Calculation
Gross salary
£35,000
Minus Primary Threshold
£35,000 - £12,570 = £22,430
NI at 8%
£22,430 × 8% = £1,794.40
Example: £60,000 Salary
Step
Calculation
Gross salary
£60,000
Earnings between PT and UEL
£50,270 - £12,570 = £37,700
NI at 8% on this band
£37,700 × 8% = £3,016
Earnings above UEL
£60,000 - £50,270 = £9,730
NI at 2% on this
£9,730 × 2% = £194.60
Total NI
£3,210.60
Example: £100,000 Salary
Step
Calculation
Gross salary
£100,000
NI at 8% (£12,570 to £50,270)
£37,700 × 8% = £3,016
NI at 2% (above £50,270)
£49,730 × 2% = £994.60
Total NI
£4,010.60
NI by Salary — Quick Lookup Table
Annual Salary
Monthly NI
Annual NI
Effective Rate
£15,000
£16.20
£194.40
1.30%
£20,000
£49.53
£594.40
2.97%
£25,000
£82.87
£994.40
3.98%
£30,000
£116.20
£1,394.40
4.65%
£35,000
£149.53
£1,794.40
5.13%
£40,000
£182.87
£2,194.40
5.49%
£45,000
£216.20
£2,594.40
5.77%
£50,000
£249.53
£2,994.40
5.99%
£55,000
£259.20
£3,110.60
5.66%
£60,000
£267.55
£3,210.60
5.35%
£70,000
£284.22
£3,410.60
4.87%
£80,000
£300.88
£3,610.60
4.51%
£100,000
£334.22
£4,010.60
4.01%
£150,000
£417.55
£5,010.60
3.34%
Self-Employed National Insurance 2026/27
Self-employed people pay Class 4 NI on their taxable profits.
Class 4 Rates
Profit Band
NI Rate
Up to £12,570
0%
£12,571 to £50,270
6%
Over £50,270
2%
Class 2 — Abolished But Credits Continue
Class 2 NI (previously £3.45/week) was abolished from April 2024. However, self-employed people with profits over £6,725 still automatically receive National Insurance credits for State Pension purposes — you just don’t pay separately for them anymore.
Self-Employed NI Examples
Annual Profit
Class 4 NI
£15,000
£145.80
£20,000
£445.80
£30,000
£1,045.80
£40,000
£1,645.80
£50,000
£2,245.80
£60,000
£2,441.80
£80,000
£2,841.80
£100,000
£3,241.80
Employer National Insurance 2026/27
Employers pay NI on top of your salary — this doesn’t come out of your wages.
Employer NI Rates
Employee Earnings
Employer NI Rate
Up to £5,000/year
0%
Over £5,000/year
15%
Employment Allowance
Small businesses can claim Employment Allowance of up to £10,500 per year, which reduces their employer NI bill. This means many small employers pay no employer NI at all.
Business Type
Can Claim Employment Allowance?
Company with multiple employees
Yes (up to £10,500)
Sole director company (no other employees)
No
Household employing nanny/carer
Yes
Charity
Yes
Employer NI Examples
Employee Salary
Employer NI (no allowance)
£25,000
£3,000
£35,000
£4,500
£50,000
£6,750
£75,000
£10,500
£100,000
£14,250
NI for Directors
Company directors have slightly different NI calculations. Instead of weekly/monthly thresholds, directors’ NI is calculated annually using the annual earnings period.
Director Earnings
Calculation
Under £12,570
No NI
£12,571 to £50,270
8%
Over £50,270
2%
This prevents directors who pay themselves irregularly (large bonus months) from accidentally exceeding thresholds.
NI Categories and Letters
Your payslip shows an NI category letter. Most employees are Category A.
Category
Who It Applies To
A
Standard employees (aged 21+)
B
Married women with reduced rate election (rare)
C
Over State Pension age
H
Apprentices under 25
J
Deferment (multiple jobs)
M
Under 21
Z
Under 21, deferment
Reduced NI for Under 21s
Employees under 21 pay the same NI rates as other employees, but their employers pay 0% employer NI on earnings up to £50,270 (the Upper Secondary Threshold). This incentivises youth employment.
When NI Stops
Situation
Do You Pay NI?
Reached State Pension age
No — but employer still pays employer NI on your wages
On maternity/sick leave
Depends on whether you receive pay
Unemployed
No pay = no NI (but may get NI credits)
Self-employed but no profit
No Class 4 NI due
Building State Pension Entitlement
You need 35 qualifying years of NI contributions to get the full State Pension. You build years by:
Method
Threshold
Employed — earning over Lower Earnings Limit
£6,396/year
Self-employed — profits over
£6,725/year
Receiving NI credits (UC, child benefit, carer’s allowance)
Automatic
Voluntary contributions (Class 3)
£17.45/week
If you earn between the Lower Earnings Limit (£6,396) and Primary Threshold (£12,570), you pay no NI but still build State Pension entitlement.
Multiple Jobs and NI
If you have multiple jobs, each employer calculates NI separately based on what they pay you. This can mean:
You pay 8% NI at each job (even if combined earnings exceed £50,270)
You may overpay NI if your combined earnings are high
Deferring NI (Multiple Jobs)
If you expect to pay more than the annual maximum NI due to multiple jobs, you can apply to defer NI on your second job. HMRC will refund any overpayment after the tax year.