Personal Allowance (UK)
The slice of annual UK income that is not subject to income tax — £12,570 for 2025/26.
The Personal Allowance is the amount of UK income an individual can earn each tax year before income tax is due. For 2025/26 it is £12,570 — frozen at that level since 2021/22, currently legislated to stay frozen through 2027/28 per the 2024 Autumn Statement.
The allowance is delivered through the tax code (1257L is the standard 2025/26 code). HMRC adjusts the code if the employee has other income, multiple jobs, or claims marriage allowance. Once gross income exceeds £100,000, the Personal Allowance starts to taper at £1 for every £2 over — it is fully withdrawn at £125,140, which is also the additional-rate threshold. That creates the well-known 60% effective marginal band between £100,000 and £125,140.
The Personal Allowance applies to England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. Scotland uses the same allowance amount but applies its own bands above it.
Calculator pages that use this term
See also
- PAYE (Pay As You Earn) — The UK system for collecting income tax + National Insurance directly from payroll each month.
- Higher-rate threshold (UK) — The UK income level at which the 40% higher-rate income-tax band begins — £50,270 for 2025/26.
- Tax year — The 12-month period over which annual tax is computed — calendar year in most countries, April-to-April in the UK.