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Pension annual allowance calculator

Check pension allowance, carry-forward and any excess.

Free, no sign-up. AI never does the maths.

Headroom remaining (AA + CF)£50,000.00

See the working
Worked example.
— Inputs

This year, income, and the three prior years.

Member + employer + tax relief. Leave out member contributions after age 75.

Why we ask
Member contributions paid after age 75 are not relievable and are not pension input (FA 2004 s.188(3)(a), s.233(1)(a)). Leave them out; employer contributions still count.

From the DB PIA calculation (16× method) — not contributions paid.

Net income, less relief-at-source pension, plus pay sacrificed for pension.

Why we ask
Net income less gross relief-at-source contributions, counting only those within the tax relief limit (the greater of relevant UK earnings and £3,600, less any net-pay or other relievable contributions), plus relevant sacrificed or flexible pay under arrangements made after 8 July 2015, less any taxable lump-sum death benefits. Net-pay contributions are already out of net income, so do not deduct them again.

Net income plus net-pay contributions and pension input less member contributions.

Why we ask

Net income plus specified contribution-relief addbacks and pension input less member contributions, less any taxable lump-sum death benefits. Relief-at-source contributions are not added again.

Both figures also deduct relevant taxable lump-sum death benefits.

How to work out both income figures.

Pension input in the three prior years

Enter £0 for a year with no pension input. Oldest used first.

Enter the pension input (all contributions) for each prior year — the tool derives the unused allowance as that year’s annual allowance minus the input, so a membership year with no contributions carries the full allowance forward (PTM055100). Untick “scheme member” for any year the client held no registered-scheme membership — that year is excluded from carry-forward. A prior year is tested for the taper only when you enter both of its incomes under “Prior-year income (for taper)”; otherwise it uses that year’s standard allowance. For this year, the full pension workbench (free account) can also work out threshold and adjusted income from the client’s income components.

Add other income or details

Scottish income-tax bands apply to Scottish taxpayers.

Leave blank if personal contributions are within your relief limit.

Why we ask
Employment income and self-employed or partnership trading profits (and some patent income), before tax; pension, investment and rental income are not relevant UK earnings, except furnished holiday lettings profits up to 2024-25. Relief on your own pension contributions is limited to these earnings, or to £3,600 a year if that is higher for relief-at-source contributions. Employer contributions sit outside this limit.

Employer share of the DC input, including salary sacrifice.

Why we ask
Employer contributions (incl. salary sacrifice) count toward the AA but are NOT capped by your relevant earnings.
Prior-year income (for taper)

Optional. Enter a year’s threshold income and adjusted income to test that year for the taper: its unused allowance is then measured against that year’s own tapered allowance (PTM057100). A year with only one of the two figures is not tested.

For planning and illustration purposes only. Verify all inputs against source documents. This tool does not constitute financial or tax advice.

Print this quick illustration now. Signed-in users can add a client or file reference before saving it as a PDF. Create the compliance annex, with its working and HMRC references, in the signed-in workflow.

Standard allowance, the high-earner taper, MPAA and carry-forward in one screen — with the chargeable excess shown, not implied.

Free to use, with no sign-up. Your figures stay in this browser unless you choose to share them or send them to your workspace. Calculation methods and checks.

— Understanding the result

The pension annual allowance limits yearly pension input before an annual allowance charge may apply. Total pension input — every money-purchase contribution plus any defined-benefit input amount — above the allowance plus available carry-forward is the chargeable amount, taxed at your marginal rate through the annual allowance charge.

— How it's calculated

The annual allowance test

Total pension input for the year — every money-purchase contribution (member, employer and tax relief) plus any defined-benefit input amount — is tested against the applicable annual allowance plus available carry-forward. Input above that total is the chargeable amount, taxed at the member's marginal rate through the annual allowance charge.

PTM051100 (annual allowance) · FA 2004 s.227–229

Taper and MPAA both bite here

High earners lose allowance £1 for every £2 of adjusted income over the taper line — but only when threshold income also exceeds its gate. Members who have flexibly accessed a money-purchase pot face the MPAA on the DC side instead: a hard cap with no carry-forward against it, while the DB side keeps the alternative allowance. The tool runs the same engine as the signed-in product, so both interactions are priced, not approximated.

PTM057100 (taper) · PTM056510 (MPAA)

The 100% earnings rule is separate

Tax relief on a member's own contributions is capped at the greater of 100% of their relevant UK earnings and the £3,600 gross basic amount — so a member with no relevant earnings at all can still get relief on £3,600 gross a year. It is a different test from the annual allowance, applied to a different base: employer contributions are outside it entirely (they count for the annual allowance but never consume the earnings limit), and pension, property, savings and dividend income are not relevant UK earnings. A member can breach one test without the other; the tool checks both.

PTM044100 · FA 2004 s.190 (annual limit for relief)

— How to calculate the pension annual allowance charge

  1. Step 1

    Total the pension input

    Add every money-purchase contribution (member, employer and tax relief) plus any defined-benefit pension input amount for the tax year.

  2. Step 2

    Find the applicable allowance

    Start from the standard annual allowance, then apply the high-earner taper where adjusted income and threshold income both exceed their gates, down to the taper floor.

  3. Step 3

    Add carry-forward

    Add unused annual allowance from the three previous tax years, used oldest year first.

  4. Step 4

    Apply the MPAA if triggered

    If the member has flexibly accessed a money-purchase pot, test money-purchase input against the MPAA (no carry-forward against it) and the rest against the alternative annual allowance.

  5. Step 5

    Compute the charge

    Pension input above the total available allowance is the chargeable amount, taxed at the member’s marginal rate as the annual allowance charge.

— Worked example

£70,000 DC input · £90,000 earnings · threshold income £20,000, adjusted income £90,000 · £60,000 unused AA across the 3 prior years · 2026/27
Applicable annual allowance (no taper at this income)
£60,000
Carry-forward available
£60,000
Total allowance
£120,000
Pension input tested
£70,000
Headroom remaining (AA + CF)
£50,000
Chargeable excess
£0

Computed live by the same engine the tool above runs. The £10,000 over the in-year allowance is absorbed by carry-forward, consumed from the oldest year first — no charge arises.

— Frequently asked questions

What is the pension annual allowance?

It limits yearly pension input before an annual allowance charge may apply. The standard allowance is £60,000 in 2026/27. The taper can reduce it for high earners, and the money purchase annual allowance applies to money-purchase input once a pot has been flexibly accessed. Conditions for tax relief on personal contributions are a separate test.

How does carry-forward work with the annual allowance?

You add unused annual allowance from the three previous tax years to the current year, using the current year first and then the oldest of the three. Carry-forward only arises from a year in which you were a member of a registered pension scheme.

When does the annual allowance taper apply?

Only when both income tests are failed: threshold income above its gate and adjusted income above the taper line. Above both, the allowance reduces by £1 for every £2 of adjusted income over the line, down to the year-specific floor.

What is the annual allowance charge?

Where total pension input exceeds the available allowance plus carry-forward, the excess is the chargeable amount and is taxed at your marginal rate. The charge effectively removes the tax relief given on the excess input.

Is the annual allowance the same as the 100% of earnings limit?

No. Tax relief on a member’s own contributions is separately capped at the greater of 100% of their relevant UK earnings and the £3,600 gross basic amount — a different test, on a different base. Employer contributions are outside that limit but still count towards the annual allowance, and pension, property, savings and dividend income are not relevant UK earnings. A member can breach one test without the other, so both are checked.

— Related