Pension tax relief calculator, 2026/27
Basic-rate relief is added automatically, but higher and additional rate directors often forget to claim the rest through their tax return. Enter your income and a gross contribution to see exactly how much relief you are entitled to at each rate.
The pension tax relief calculator runs on the rates and thresholds HMRC has published for the 2026/27 tax year, so the figures you see reflect the position your company is actually filing on rather than a historic set of bands. Change any input and the result recalculates immediately, with no sign-up and nothing sent anywhere.
If you are a director of a UK limited company, use it as a first look before a decision rather than as the decision itself. Basic-rate relief at source of 20.0% is assumed to be claimed automatically by the pension provider on every contribution. Real company positions bring in other income, reliefs, group structures and prior year adjustments that a single page of inputs cannot see, which is why the workings are written out below under pensions. Read those, then check the numbers against your own accounts, and speak to us if anything looks materially different from what you expected.
Last reviewed 12 September 2026 for the 2026/27 tax year. Reviewed by Waqas Sagar, Member of ICAEW, Fellow of ACCA, Fellow of AAT.
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Result, 2026/27
Basic-rate relief (added automatically at source)
Further relief reclaimable via self-assessment
Based on a marginal rate of 39.5% on your total income.Total tax relief on this contribution
Net cost of the contribution to you
Illustration only, figures are based on the rates you have selected and the information entered. Please check your own position with us before acting.
Estimates for the 2026/27 tax year using published GOV.UK rates. Switch between 2026/27 and 2025/26 above.
How this is calculated
Under relief at source, your pension provider automatically claims basic-rate relief of 20.0% from HMRC and adds it to your contribution. This calculator shows that amount first, then estimates any further relief due at your marginal rate, which is 40% or 45% once your income crosses the higher or additional rate thresholds.
Technically HMRC gives higher and additional rate relief by extending your basic-rate and higher-rate bands by the gross amount of the contribution, rather than issuing you a simple percentage refund, but the net effect on your tax bill is equivalent to the marginal-rate calculation shown here.
This further relief is not automatic. You must declare pension contributions on your self-assessment return, and HMRC then extends your bands accordingly, which either increases a repayment or reduces the tax you owe.
Directors and dividend income
Dividend income is taxed after salary in the order of income, so a large pension contribution can extend the basic-rate band available to dividends, potentially moving dividends from the higher 35.75% rate down to the ordinary 10.75% rate, which is a common tax planning point for director-shareholders.
This means the relief on a contribution can be worth more to a director with significant dividend income than the headline marginal rate on salary alone would suggest, because it can also affect how much dividend income is taxed at each rate.
Claiming what you are owed
If you only file a tax return because you are a director, make sure pension contributions are entered on the correct section of the return; missing this is one of the most common reasons directors underpay themselves in relief they are entitled to.
If you do not otherwise need to file a return, HMRC can sometimes adjust your tax code instead, but calling HMRC or writing to them is usually necessary to claim relief outside self-assessment.
What this means for your company
Treat the result as a planning figure for the 2026/27 tax year. If it changes what you were about to do, take a director's salary, a dividend, a large asset purchase or a filing decision, check it against your own accounts first. We can review the position with you and confirm the tax treatment before you commit.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to do anything to get basic-rate relief?
No, under a relief at source scheme your provider claims the 20% relief automatically and adds it to your contribution, usually within a few weeks of the contribution being made.
How do I claim higher-rate relief?
You must declare the gross amount of your pension contributions on your self-assessment tax return, which then extends your basic and higher-rate bands and either reduces your tax bill or increases a repayment.
Does an employer contribution get the same relief?
No, employer contributions are paid gross and do not need tax relief added because they were never taxed as your income in the first place, though they still count towards your annual allowance.
Can pension contributions affect my dividend tax rate?
Yes, extending the basic-rate band with a pension contribution can move some dividend income from the higher 35.75% rate to the ordinary 10.75% rate, increasing the effective value of the relief for director-shareholders.
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