WageUK Tax Year Dates 2026-27 (6 April to 5 April)
The UK tax year runs from 6 April to 5 April: the 2026-27 year begins on 6 April 2026 and ends on 5 April 2027. Income tax, National Insurance and pension thresholds are all fixed for that window, and almost every change to them takes effect only at the 6 April rollover rather than on 1 January or any other date.
6 April to 5 April
The tax year is not the calendar year. It starts on 6 April and ends on 5 April the following year, so the 2026-27 year covers 6 April 2026 to 5 April 2027. The £12,570 Personal Allowance, the 20%, 40% and 45% bands and the National Insurance thresholds all apply across this full period.
Because the year straddles two calendar years, a single salary can sit under two different sets of rates if it changes partway through. The figure that matters for any given pound of pay is the rate in force on the date it is earned, within the tax year it falls in.
The two moments that reset the rates
Two events drive the rates. The Autumn Budget, usually in late November, is where the government sets the coming year's UK income tax, National Insurance and allowance figures. The 6 April rollover is when those decisions actually take effect and payroll starts using the new numbers.
Between the Budget and the rollover, employers and payroll software update tax codes ready for the new year. For 2026-27, though, income tax, National Insurance and pension thresholds are frozen until April 2028, so recent Budgets have largely left these lines unchanged. Freezing is itself a deliberate policy: with thresholds held while pay rises, more income is dragged into tax each year - fiscal drag - without any rate being announced.
Scotland sets its bands separately in December
Scotland's income tax bands are decided at the Scottish Budget, usually in December, separately from the UK Autumn Budget and often after it. That is when the 19% to 48% Scottish bands and their thresholds are set for the following April. The Personal Allowance and National Insurance are not devolved, so those remain UK-wide and are set at Westminster.
The result is two Budget events feeding into the same 6 April start date: one at Westminster for UK-wide figures and the Personal Allowance, and one at Holyrood for the Scottish bands.
Key payroll dates
For employees, the practical dates hang off the same window. New tax codes take effect on 6 April, the first day of the year. 5 April is the last day of the old year, after which employers issue a P60 summarising the year's pay and deductions. PAYE tax and National Insurance are then deducted each pay period through the year against the thresholds fixed at the start.
Because the thresholds are annual, payroll spreads them across the pay periods - roughly £242 a week or £1,048 a month for the National Insurance primary threshold - so deductions stay even for someone on steady pay.
Why the odd April dates
The early-April dates are a historical accident. The tax year-end once fell on Lady Day, 25 March, one of the traditional English quarter days. When Britain moved from the Julian to the Gregorian calendar and dropped days to realign with the rest of Europe, the Treasury shifted the year-end forward by the same number of days so the tax year kept its full length and no revenue was lost.
A later adjustment nudged it once more, which is how the year-end settled on 5 April, with the new year starting the next day on 6 April. The dates have stayed there ever since, long after the reason for them faded.
Frequently asked questions
When does the 2026-27 tax year start and end?
It runs from 6 April 2026 to 5 April 2027. All the 2026-27 rates and thresholds - the £12,570 Personal Allowance, the tax bands and the National Insurance limits - apply across that window.
Why does the UK tax year start on 6 April?
It is a legacy of the switch from the Julian to the Gregorian calendar. The year-end used to fall on 25 March, and the Treasury moved it forward so no tax was lost when calendar days were dropped, eventually settling on a 5 April year-end and a 6 April start.
Does the Scottish Budget change my Personal Allowance?
No. The Scottish Budget sets only the Scottish income tax bands, from the 19% starter rate to the 48% top rate. The £12,570 Personal Allowance and National Insurance are UK-wide and are set at the Westminster Budget.
General information, not advice. Estimates assume the standard 1257L tax code and typical circumstances; your payslip may differ by a pound or two because HMRC payroll software truncates at each step. Verify with HMRC or an accountant for any decision. WageReckon stores no salary data - the calculators run in your browser.
Rates for the 2026-27 tax year, current as of 24 July 2026. Source: HMRC (gov.uk). Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: HMRC / gov.uk. See how we calculate.