Is the State Pension taxable?

Yes. The State Pension counts as income, but it is paid without tax taken off. In 2026/27 the full new State Pension is £241.30 a week, £12,547.60 a year, which is below the £12,570 personal allowance. Any tax due is collected through the tax code on another pension or earnings, or by an assessment from HMRC.

What is the Pension Tax Allowance?

A reduction in income tax for people over State Pension age from 6 April 2027, worth up to £94 in 2027/28. Anyone with total income up to the full new State Pension of £13,036.40 gets the full amount; above that it falls by £1 for every £3 of income and is gone at £13,318. HMRC applies it automatically.

Does the Pension Tax Allowance change my personal allowance?

No. The £12,570 personal allowance stays the same. The Pension Tax Allowance reduces the tax worked out after the personal allowance, so it only matters when total income is above £12,570.

What counts as income for the Pension Tax Allowance?

All of it: the State Pension, private pensions, earnings, self-employment profits, savings interest, property income and dividends. The tool adds the State Pension to the other income you enter and tests the total.

How much tax do I pay on a private pension on top of the State Pension?

Each pound of total income above the £12,570 allowance is taxed at 20% until the higher rate starts. The ledger shows the band each slice lands in, and the Pension Tax Allowance line shows what it removes.

Calculators

State Pension tax calculator

Tax year 2026/27, for England and Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales. The State Pension plus other income against the personal allowance, and the Pension Tax Allowance that begins on 6 April 2027.

Results update as you type. Your inputs are kept in this browser and are never sent anywhere.

Income tax for the year

£0a year

Income after tax: £12,548
A month after tax: £1,046
Effective rate: 0%

Total income of £12,547.60 is within the personal allowance, so no tax is due.

Under 2027/28 as announced so far, the same inputs give the same tax, £0.00. None of the rules this result used is set to change. The Pension Tax Allowance begins in 2027/28.

The working

Income tax on £12,548 of income in 2026/27
Line	On	A year	Source
		£12,547.60
State Pension received in the year: £12,547.60. It is paid without tax taken off, so any tax due is collected from other income or through an assessment.
		£0.00
Private pensions, earnings and other taxable income: £0.00.
		£12,547.60	gov.uk
The standard allowance is £12,570.00. £12,547.60 of it is set against income at 0%. Checked 7 November 2026, in force.
		£0.00
There is no Pension Tax Allowance in 2026/27. It begins in April 2027.
	£0.00	£0.00
£0.00 of income is taxed; the total is £0.00.

How this is calculated

Total income. The State Pension plus the other income you enter. The full new State Pension in 2026/27 is £241.30 a week, pre-filled as £12,547.60 a year.
Personal allowance. The first £12,570 is taxed at 0%. Above £100,000 of income the allowance tapers.
Income tax. Income above the allowance is taxed band by band at the rates for where you live. Taxable income is rounded down to the pound.
Pension Tax Allowance. From 6 April 2027, up to £94 comes off the tax for anyone over State Pension age. The full amount applies when total income is at or below £13,036.40; it then falls by £1 for every £3 of income and reaches zero at £13,318. It cannot reduce the tax below nil.

The rounding conventions are listed in the methodology, and the formulas run from the open rules file for 2026/27.

Rules used

Tax year: 2026/27 (6 April 2026 to 5 April 2027)
Nation: England and Northern Ireland
Figures: Checked on 7 November 2026. Status: in force.
Next scheduled change: 6 April 2027: New tax year. Savings and property income rates rise to 24%, 44% and 49%, the trading allowance rises to £3,000, the Pension Tax Allowance begins and the mileage rate above 10,000 miles rises to 35p.
Every figure: Rates and allowances for 2026/27, each with its source and the date it was checked.

What changes on 6 April 2027

New tax year. Savings and property income rates rise to 24%, 44% and 49%, the trading allowance rises to £3,000, the Pension Tax Allowance begins and the mileage rate above 10,000 miles rises to 35p.

None of the figures this tool uses is set to change on that date, as far as 2027/28 has been announced.

You can switch the tax year above to see the result under 2027/28 as announced so far.

What this does not do. It treats other income as pensions or earnings taxed at the main rates and does not model savings allowances, dividends, a marriage allowance transfer, a tax code adjustment, National Insurance on earnings (none is due over State Pension age) or the year someone reaches State Pension age. It never suggests what to do with the result.

Questions people ask

Is the State Pension taxable?: Yes. The State Pension counts as income, but it is paid without tax taken off. In 2026/27 the full new State Pension is £241.30 a week, £12,547.60 a year, which is below the £12,570 personal allowance. Any tax due is collected through the tax code on another pension or earnings, or by an assessment from HMRC.
What is the Pension Tax Allowance?: A reduction in income tax for people over State Pension age from 6 April 2027, worth up to £94 in 2027/28. Anyone with total income up to the full new State Pension of £13,036.40 gets the full amount; above that it falls by £1 for every £3 of income and is gone at £13,318. HMRC applies it automatically.
Does the Pension Tax Allowance change my personal allowance?: No. The £12,570 personal allowance stays the same. The Pension Tax Allowance reduces the tax worked out after the personal allowance, so it only matters when total income is above £12,570.
What counts as income for the Pension Tax Allowance?: All of it: the State Pension, private pensions, earnings, self-employment profits, savings interest, property income and dividends. The tool adds the State Pension to the other income you enter and tests the total.
How much tax do I pay on a private pension on top of the State Pension?: Each pound of total income above the £12,570 allowance is taxed at 20% until the higher rate starts. The ledger shows the band each slice lands in, and the Pension Tax Allowance line shows what it removes.

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