Pension annual allowance calculator 2026/27
The annual allowance is the most that can go into your pensions in a tax year (6 April to 5 April) before tax is due. For 2026/27 it's £60,000, and that includes your employer's contributions. Check whether yours is lower, and how much unused allowance you can carry forward.
This tax year (2026/27)
Previous 3 years (carry forward)
| Tax year | Member of a pension? | Your allowance (£) | Paid in (£) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023/24 | |||
| 2024/25 | |||
| 2025/26 |
Change "your allowance" for a past year if it was tapered or the MPAA applied. This is an estimate: it doesn't adjust for a past year that itself went over its allowance and used up earlier carry forward. Your pension statements and HMRC's carry forward guidance give the exact figures.
The 2026/27 rules (from GOV.UK)
- Annual allowance: £60,000. It covers everything paid into defined contribution schemes by you or anyone else (including your employer), plus any increase in defined benefit pensions. See GOV.UK.
- Taper: only if threshold income is over £200,000 and adjusted income is over £260,000. The allowance drops £1 for every £2 over £260,000, down to a minimum of £10,000. See work out your tapered allowance.
- Money purchase annual allowance (MPAA): £10,000 once you've flexibly accessed a pension, for example by taking taxable cash from drawdown. Unused MPAA can't be carried forward.
- Carry forward: you use this year's allowance first, then unused allowance from the previous 3 years, earliest first (for 2026/27: 2023/24, 2024/25, then 2025/26). You must have been a member of a registered pension scheme in that year, but you didn't need to pay in.
- Tax relief limit: your own contributions only get tax relief up to 100% of your UK earnings (or £3,600 gross if you earn less). Carry forward doesn't raise this.
- Over the limit? The excess is taxed at your rate through Self Assessment (the "pension savings tax charges" section). "Scheme pays" may let your pension pay it.
Threshold vs adjusted income, simply
Threshold income is roughly your taxable income minus personal pension contributions you made with relief at source, plus any salary sacrifice set up after 8 July 2015. Adjusted income is roughly your taxable income plus all pension contributions, including your employer's. If your threshold income is £200,000 or less, there's no taper, however high your adjusted income.
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What is the pension annual allowance for 2026/27?
£60,000, including employer contributions. It can be lower if you have a high income (the taper, down to £10,000) or have flexibly accessed a pension (the £10,000 MPAA).
Can I carry forward unused pension allowance?
Yes, from the previous 3 tax years, if you were a member of a registered pension scheme in those years. You use the current year first, then the earliest year first.
Does carry forward work with the MPAA?
No. Unused money purchase annual allowance can't be carried forward.
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