Tax Rates 2018/19 and 2019/20
Break down what the taxman gets
Nothing's as certain as death and taxes. Yet while there's no doubt we'll all be taxed, the rates can change rapidly. Will you pay income tax at the basic rate of 20% or will you end up in the higher-rate 40% tax bracket (or 19%, 21% or 41% in Scotland)?
This guide covers income tax thresholds, the personal allowance, national insurance and more for the current tax year (2018/19), as well as the new tax year, starting 6 April 2019.
In this guide
Always factor in income tax and national insurance
While your income tax rate is important, it’s not the only thing to affect your take-home pay. You also need to factor in national insurance (assuming you're below state pension age).
In this guide we explain the differences between them, the thresholds and the rates you'll pay, including those in Scotland, which vary from the rest of the UK.
And remember, what you'll actually get deducted from your pay packet will be a combination of income tax and national insurance.
What's my personal tax allowance?
Each of us has a 'personal allowance'. This is the amount we can earn without paying any income tax.
If you earn more than your personal allowance, you pay tax at the applicable income tax rate on all earnings above the personal allowance, but the allowance itself remains untaxed.
What's my personal tax allowance?
Are you married or in a civil partnership?
If you've answered "yes", and you and your partner were born on or after 6 April 1935, then you may be entitled to the marriage tax allowance. This allows couples to transfer a proportion of their personal allowance between them.
The marriage tax allowance will go up from £1,190 for 2018/19 to £1,250 for 2019/20. This means the tax saving will go up from £238 to £250.
Alternatively, if one of you was born before 6 April 1935, you can get a different married couple's allowance, which is also available to civil partners. See the Government's married couple's allowance calculator to see exactly what you'll get.
Ten per cent of the married couple's allowance is subtracted from your annual income tax bill. If you were married before 5 December 2005, it is automatically worked out using the husband's salary. For couples married on or after 5 December 2005, it uses the highest earner's salary.
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What income tax band am I in?
Once you know your personal allowance, anything extra earned above that will be subject to income tax. For the 2018/19 and 2019/20 tax years, if you live in England, Wales or Northern Ireland, there are three marginal income tax bands – the 20% basic rate, the 40% higher rate and the 45% additional rate (also remember your personal allowance starts to shrink once earnings hit £100,000).
If you live in Scotland, there are five marginal income tax bands for the 2018/19 and 2019/20 tax years – the starter rate of 19%, the 20% basic rate, the 21% intermediate rate, the 41% higher rate and the 46% additional rate.
To find out your income tax rate, see the tables below. The first two are for those in England, Wales or Northern Ireland, for 2018/19 and 2019/20, and the second two are for those in Scotland, again, for this tax year and next.
What is my income tax rate for 2018/19?
| EARNINGS (IF YOU LIVE IN ENGLAND, WALES OR NORTHERN IRELAND) | 2018/19 RATE |
|---|---|
| Under your personal allowance (PA) For most, £11,850 |
No income tax payable |
| Between PA and PA + £34,500 (basic rate) For most, over £11,850 to £46,350 |
20% |
| Between PA + £34,500 and £150,000 (higher rate) For most, over £46,350 to £150,000 |
40% (1) |
| Over £150,000 (additional rate) | 45% |
(1) Personal allowance drops by £1 for every £2 earned over £100,000.
What is my income tax rate for 2019/20?
| EARNINGS (IF YOU LIVE IN ENGLAND, WALES OR NORTHERN IRELAND) | 2019/20 RATE |
|---|---|
| Under your personal allowance (PA) For most, £12,500 |
No income tax payable |
| Between PA and PA + £37,500 (basic rate) For most, over £12,500 to £50,000 |
20% |
| Between PA + £37,500 and £150,000 (higher rate) For most, over £50,000 to £150,000 |
40% (1) |
| Over £150,000 (additional rate) | 45% |
(1) Personal allowance drops by £1 for every £2 earned over £100,000.
I'm in Scotland. What is my income tax rate for 2018/19?
| EARNINGS (IF YOU LIVE IN SCOTLAND) | 2018/19 RATE |
|---|---|
| Under your personal allowance (PA) For most, £11,850 |
No income tax payable |
| Between PA and PA + £2,000 (starter rate) For most, over £11,850 to £13,850 |
19% |
| Between PA + £2,000 and PA + £12,150 (basic rate) For most, over £13,850 to £24,000 |
20% |
| Between PA + £12,150 and PA + £31,580 (intermediate rate) For most, over £24,000 to £43,430 |
21% |
| Between PA + £31,580 and £150,000 (higher rate) For most, over £43,430 to £150,000 |
41% (1) |
| Over £150,000 (additional rate) | 46% |
(1) Personal allowance drops by £1 for every £2 earned over £100,000.
| EARNINGS (IF YOU LIVE IN SCOTLAND) | 2019/20 RATE |
|---|---|
| Under your personal allowance (PA) For most, £12,500 |
No income tax payable |
| Between PA and PA + £2,049 (starter rate) For most, over £12,500 to £14,549 |
19% |
| Between PA + £2,049 and PA + £12,444 (basic rate) For most, over £14,549 to £24,944 |
20% |
| Between PA + £12,444 and PA + £30,930 (intermediate rate) For most, over £24,944 to £43,430 |
21% |
| Between PA + £30,930 and £150,000 (higher rate) For most, over £43,430 to £150,000 |
41% (1) |
| Over £150,000 (additional rate) | 46% |
(1) Personal allowance drops by £1 for every £2 earned over £100,000.
Marginal bands mean you only pay the specified tax rate on that portion of salary. For example, if your salary puts you in the 40% tax bracket (between PA + £34,500 and £150,000 in 2018/19, unless you live in Scotland), then you only pay 40% tax on the segment of earnings in that income tax band. For the lower part of your earnings, you'll still pay the appropriate 20% or 0%.
Do you submit self-assessment tax returns?
The most recent deadline for submitting your self-assessment tax return was 31 January 2019. This was for the 2017/18 tax year, which ended on 5 April 2018.
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Other tax-free allowances
Since April 2016, your savings interest has been paid to you tax-free, and the personal savings allowance (PSA) has come into play. The PSA means every basic-rate taxpayer can earn £1,000 interest a year without paying tax on it. Higher-rate payers get a £500 allowance, and additional-raters don't get an allowance.
There's no change to savings allowances in 2019/20.
If you're a low earner, there's another tax-free allowance you get, called the starting savings rate. This allows you to earn another £5,000/year in savings interest tax-free if you earn less than £11,850/year this tax year. For every pound you earn above this threshold, you lose a pound of savings allowance. For more on this, see our Tax-Free Savings guide.
What's national insurance?
In addition to plain old income tax, most UK workers also have national insurance contributions deducted from their pay. These kick in based on your earnings from the age of 16, and you usually stop paying when you reach state pension age.
What's my 2018/19 national insurance rate?
| EARNINGS TABLE_CELL_STYLE | 2018/19 NATIONAL INSURANCE RATE (FOR EMPLOYED, NOT SELF-EMPLOYED) | |
|---|---|---|
| Per week | Annual salary | |
| Under £162 | Under £8,424 | No national insurance payable |
| £162 to £892 | £8,424 to £46,350 | 12% on everything earned between £162 and £892 a week |
| Over £892 | Over £46,350 | 12% on everything earned between £162 and £892 a week, 2% on everything above that |
| Some advanced national insurance rules are complicated. See the HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) website for full rates. | ||
What's my 2019/20 national insurance rate?
| EARNINGS TABLE_CELL_STYLE | 2018/19 NATIONAL INSURANCE RATE (FOR EMPLOYED, NOT SELF-EMPLOYED) | |
|---|---|---|
| Per week | Annual salary | |
| Under £166 | Under £8,632 | No national insurance payable |
| £166 to £962 | £8,632 to £50,000 | 12% on everything earned between £166 and £962 a week |
| Over £962 | Over £50,000 | 12% on everything earned between £166 and £962 a week, 2% on everything above that |
| Some advanced national insurance rules are complicated. See the HMRC website for full rates. | ||
What if I'm self-employed?
The national insurance rules if you're self-employed are more complicated than those for employees. You usually pay two sorts of national insurance contributions (NICs) – class 2 and class 4.
NICs are paid on profits you make, which are calculated by deducting your expenses from your self-employment income, above a certain threshold. Most self-employed people pay national insurance through self-assessment.
What are my 2018/19 class 2 NICs?
| PROFITS (PER YEAR) | 2018/19 CLASS 2 NIC RATE (FOR SELF-EMPLOYED, NOT EMPLOYED) | |
|---|---|---|
| Under £6,205 | No national insurance payable | |
| Over £6,205 | £2.95 a week | |
| Some advanced national insurance rules are complicated. See the HMRC website for full rates. | ||
What are my 2019/20 class 2 NICs?
| PROFITS (PER YEAR) | 2019/20 CLASS 2 NIC RATE (FOR SELF-EMPLOYED, NOT EMPLOYED) | |
|---|---|---|
| Under £6,365 | No national insurance payable | |
| Over £6,365 | £3 a week | |
| Some advanced national insurance rules are complicated. See the HMRC website for full rates. | ||
What are my class 4 NICs?
| PROFITS (PER YEAR) | CLASS 4 NIC RATE (FOR SELF-EMPLOYED, NOT EMPLOYED) | |
|---|---|---|
Under £8,424 (2018/19)
Under £8,632 (2019/20) |
No national insurance payable | |
£8,424 to £46,350 (2018/19)
£8,632 to £50,000 (2019/20) |
9% | |
Over £46,350 (2018/19)
Over £50,000 (2019/20) |
9% on everything earned between £8,424 and £46,350 (2018/19) / £8,632 and £50,000 (2019/20), 2% on everything above that for both tax years | |
| Some advanced national insurance rules are complicated. See the HMRC website for full rates. | ||
Voluntary national insurance contributions
If you have gaps in your national insurance (NI) record, for example because you earned less than the NI threshold or were living abroad, it could mean that you don't qualify for the full state pension.
If you want to plug these gaps, you may be able to pay voluntary class 3 NICs – and you can usually fill gaps for the past six tax years. For more information see our State Pension guide.
What are my class 3 NICs?
| RATE PER WEEK | RATE PER YEAR | |
|---|---|---|
| £14.65 (2018/19), £15 (2019/20) | £762 (2018/19), £780 (2019/20) | |
| Some advanced national insurance rules are complicated. See the HMRC website for full rates. | ||
Capital gains tax
Capital gains tax (CGT) is one of the least common taxes on income, and for many it won't apply. However, if you sell or give away an asset worth more than £6,000, you could have to pay CGT. It doesn't apply for main homes, cars or lottery/pools winnings, among other things.
Each year, individuals have an 'annual exempt amount' that allows them to receive some gains tax-free. Above this, you pay CGT on all gains.
Capital gains tax in 2018/19 and 2019/20
| Annual exempt amount | £11,700 for individuals in 2018/19, £12,000 in 2019/20 |
|---|---|
| Standard CGT rate | 18% on residential property, 10% on other assets (same for 2019/20) |
| Higher CGT rate | 28% on residential property, 20% on other assets (same for 2019/20) |
| Your rate of CGT will depend on your other taxable income. See Gov.uk for more on how to work this out, and for more on the increased annual exempt amount, see this Gov.uk webpage. | |
If you give or sell assets to your spouse or civil partner, you won't have to pay CGT, unless:
- You separated and didn't live together during that tax year
- The assets you gave them were sold on via their business
It's worth giving or selling your assets to your spouse or civil partner if you'll exceed the annual exempt amount of £11,700, but your partner won't. That way, neither of you will need to pay CGT.
If they later sell the asset...
Your spouse or civil partner may have to pay tax on any gain if they later sell the asset.
Dividend tax
There are two ways you make money from investing. One is when the shares increase in value and then you reap a nice profit when you sell them. The other is when they pay dividends.
Dividends are a bit like interest on a savings account. If a company makes a profit, it gives some of it back to you – it could be on a regular basis or as a one-off. And just as you have a personal savings allowance for tax-free interest on savings, you also have a tax-free dividends allowance.
Since 6 April 2018, you've been able to receive £2,000 of tax-free dividends per tax year.
Any dividends received above this allowance are taxed at the rates shown below, unless your shares are held in a stocks & shares ISA (where dividends are always tax-free).
No change for dividend tax in 2019/20
| TAX BRACKET | RATE |
|---|---|
| Basic rate | 7.5% |
| Higher rate | 32.5% |
| Additional rate | 38.1% |
If you earn more than £2,000 a year in dividend income outside of a stocks & shares ISA you'll need to inform HMRC.
Paying into a pension?
Pension payments get very complex indeed, yet the basic thing to remember is that most people don't have to pay tax on the money they pay into their pension via their employer's pay-as-you-earn (PAYE) system. Instead, this tax saving is used to top up your pension contributions.
If you're not a taxpayer, eg, you don't earn enough to pay income tax, but are contributing to a pension, you'll still have the tax saving added to your contributions up to a certain amount. You'll be given an extra £20 for every £80 you pay into a pension up until you've contributed £2,880. This means the Government tops up your pension to £3,600.
However, there are some limits on the amount of tax-free contributions you can make (both in a year and over your lifetime).
Pension contribution limits 2018/19 & 2019/20
| Annual tax-free contribution limit | £40,000 | £40,000 (no change) |
|---|---|---|
| Lifetime tax-free allowance | £1,030,000 | £1,055,000 |
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