Bonus tax in the UK · 2026/27 tax year

Bonus tax in the UK, 2026/27

A bonus is taxed as normal pay at your highest rate, so a basic-rate taxpayer keeps about 72p to 76p in every £1 and a higher-rate taxpayer about 58p. A £5,000 bonus on £35,000 leaves £3,823.66 in 2026/27; on £55,000 it leaves £2,900. Between £100,000 and £125,140 the rate is 60%, so £10,000 on £95,000 leaves only £4,800. Pick an amount for tables by salary, Scotland and pension sacrifice.

Tax, National Insurance and student loan rules checked against GOV.UK and HMRC on 25 September 2026.

£5,000 on £35,000

£3,824

kept after tax and NI

£5,000 on £55,000

£2,900

40% tax, 2% NI

£10,000 on £95,000

£4,800

half in the 60% band

Bonus sacrifice

£0 tax

if paid into your pension

What each bonus leaves you, 2026/27

Take-home from the bonus in England, Wales and Northern Ireland after Income Tax and NI, with no student loan or pension. The last column is Scotland on £35,000.

Bonus	On £25,000	On £35,000	On £55,000	On £75,000	On £110,000	Scotland on £35,000
£500	£360	£360	£290	£290	£190	£355
£1,000	£720	£720	£580	£580	£380	£710
£1,500	£1,080	£1,094	£870	£870	£570	£1,079
£2,000	£1,440	£1,484	£1,160	£1,160	£760	£1,464
£2,500	£1,824	£1,874	£1,450	£1,450	£950	£1,849
£3,000	£2,214	£2,264	£1,740	£1,740	£1,140	£2,234
£4,000	£2,994	£3,044	£2,320	£2,320	£1,520	£3,004
£5,000	£3,774	£3,824	£2,900	£2,900	£1,900	£3,774
£7,500	£5,724	£5,774	£4,350	£4,350	£2,850	£5,699
£10,000	£7,674	£7,724	£5,800	£5,800	£3,800	£7,343
£15,000	£11,574	£11,624	£8,700	£8,700	£5,700	£10,143
£20,000	£15,474	£14,578	£11,600	£11,600	£8,329	£12,943
£25,000	£19,374	£17,478	£14,500	£14,500	£10,979	£15,743
£30,000	£22,328	£20,378	£17,400	£16,400	£13,629	£18,543
£50,000	£33,928	£31,978	£28,000	£24,000	£24,229	£29,443

Income Tax rates on a bonus by total pay, 2026/27

Your salary plus bonus decides the Income Tax rate. Employee NI is separate: 8% on monthly pay from £1,048 to £4,189 and 2% above that, in the month the bonus is paid.

Salary plus bonus	England, Wales and Northern Ireland	Scotland
Up to £12,570	0%	0%
£12,571 to £50,270	20%	19%, 20%, 21%, then 42% from £43,663
£50,271 to £100,000	40%	42%, then 45% from £75,001
£100,001 to £125,140	60% effective	67.5% effective
Over £125,140	45%	48%

How a bonus is taxed

There is no separate bonus tax. The bonus is added to your pay and taxed at whatever rate that pay reaches, so it is usually taxed at your top rate. The true cost is the difference between tax on your salary alone and tax on salary plus bonus.

Why the payslip looks worse

On £35,000, a £5,000 bonus paid in December means £1,176.34 more tax and NI that month. On a normal tax code tax is worked out on your total pay so far in the tax year, so the months after pay a little less and the year comes out right. National Insurance is worked out on each month alone, so it does not.

NI on a bonus is often below 8%

Employee NI is 8% on monthly pay between £1,048 and £4,189 and 2% above that. A bonus pushes that month over £4,189, so much of it only has 2% NI. A £5,000 bonus on £35,000 costs £176.34 in NI, not £400.

The £100,000 trap

Above £100,000 you lose £1 of Personal Allowance for every £2 you earn, until it is gone at £125,140. Any bonus in that band is taxed at an effective 60%, or 67.5% in Scotland. Paying the part above £100,000 into a pension by bonus sacrifice gets the allowance back.

Child Benefit and student loans

If a bonus takes your adjusted net income over £60,000, the High Income Child Benefit Charge takes back 1% of Child Benefit for every £200 above it, all of it at £80,000. Student loans take 9% (6% for Postgraduate Loans) of pay over the monthly threshold in the bonus month, with a refund if your year ends under the yearly threshold.

Guides and definitions

National Insurance rates 2026/27: what you pay and how it works (Guide)
Emergency tax code (An emergency tax code, marked W1, M1 or X, taxes each payday on its own, as if you were paid that amount every period of the year.)
Marginal tax rate (Your marginal tax rate is the share of your next pound or dollar of income that goes in tax and deductions.)
P11D (A P11D is the form UK employers send HMRC by 6 July to report each employee's taxable benefits and expenses that were not taxed through payroll.)
P60 (A P60 is the yearly summary of your pay and tax from one employer, due by 31 May if you work there on 5 April.)
Personal Allowance (The Personal Allowance is the income you can earn each UK tax year before Income Tax starts: £12,570 for 2026/27.)

Work out your own bonus

Bonus after tax by amount

£500 bonus after tax (£360 kept on £35,000)
£1,000 bonus after tax (£720 kept on £35,000)
£1,500 bonus after tax (£1,094 kept on £35,000)
£2,000 bonus after tax (£1,484 kept on £35,000)
£2,500 bonus after tax (£1,874 kept on £35,000)
£3,000 bonus after tax (£2,264 kept on £35,000)
£4,000 bonus after tax (£3,044 kept on £35,000)
£5,000 bonus after tax (£3,824 kept on £35,000)
£7,500 bonus after tax (£5,774 kept on £35,000)
£10,000 bonus after tax (£7,724 kept on £35,000)
£15,000 bonus after tax (£11,624 kept on £35,000)
£20,000 bonus after tax (£14,578 kept on £35,000)
£25,000 bonus after tax (£17,478 kept on £35,000)
£30,000 bonus after tax (£20,378 kept on £35,000)
£50,000 bonus after tax (£31,978 kept on £35,000)

Bonus tax calculator · UK take-home pay calculator · Work out your own bonus

Common questions

How much tax do you pay on a bonus in the UK?

The same as on your salary, at your highest rate: 20% Income Tax for most people on under £50,270, 40% above that, plus NI. A £5,000 bonus on £35,000 leaves £3,823.66 after tax and NI in 2026/27.

Why is my bonus taxed so much?

It is taxed at your top rate and all in one payslip. On a normal tax code the extra Income Tax that month is balanced by less tax later in the year, so the real cost is lower than the payslip suggests. A £5,000 bonus on £35,000 costs £1,176.34 for the year.

What is the bonus tax rate in the UK?

There is no special bonus rate. In England, Wales and Northern Ireland it is 20%, 40% or 45% Income Tax depending on your total pay, or an effective 60% between £100,000 and £125,140. Employee NI is 8% or 2% depending on that month's pay.

Can I sacrifice my bonus into my pension?

If your employer runs bonus sacrifice, yes. You give up the cash and the full amount goes into your pension with no Income Tax or employee NI. On £55,000 a £5,000 bonus sacrifice saves £2,100. It must be agreed with your employer, normally before the bonus is due.

Does a bonus affect Child Benefit?

It can. If a bonus takes your adjusted net income over £60,000, the High Income Child Benefit Charge takes back 1% of the Child Benefit for every £200 over, and all of it at £80,000. Paying the bonus into a pension reduces adjusted net income.

Sources and assumptions

Paid monthly, the same salary every month, a 1257L tax code (S1257L in Scotland) on the normal cumulative basis, and no other income, for the 2026/27 tax year.
The bonus is paid in one month. Income Tax is the difference over the whole year; National Insurance and student loan are the extra taken in the bonus month, because both are worked out on each month's pay.
No pension contributions unless a table says so. Bonus sacrifice figures assume your employer offers it and pays the whole amount into your pension.
Payroll rounds in places, so your payslip can differ by a few pounds.

These are estimates, not tax advice. Your payslip depends on your tax code, how often you are paid, pension arrangements and any other income.