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Pension Tax Relief Calculator
What arrives in your pot automatically, what you have to claim, and the 60% band most calculators miss
Pension Tax Relief Calculator · 2026/27
How much tax relief will you receive on your pension contributions?
Relief at 20%, 40%, 45%, or 60% in the band most calculators miss. Enter your income and contribution and see what arrives automatically, and what you have to claim.
Models a personal contribution via ‘relief at source’. Salary sacrifice and employer contributions work differently. All income is deemed to be employment income and taxed accordingly. If you have other types of income, such as dividends or savings, different tax rates apply.
Your relief
What lands in your pension
What it really costs you
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Illustrative only, not financial advice. Uses 2026/27 rates and bands for England, Wales and Northern Ireland, Scottish income tax bands differ. Models a personal contribution via ‘relief at source’. Salary sacrifice and employer contributions work differently. All income is deemed to be employment income and taxed accordingly. If you have other types of income, such as dividends or savings, different tax rates apply. Check the best route for your contribution with us, the first conversation is free.
Relief is automatic at 20%. Above that, you have to ask.
Pension tax relief means a contribution costs you less than lands in your pot. Pay £8,000 into a personal pension and HMRC adds £2,000 automatically. That is basic-rate relief at source. For basic-rate taxpayers, the story ends there: £10,000 in the pot for £8,000.
Higher and additional rate taxpayers receive 40% or 45% relief in total. However, the extra portion is not automatic. It must be claimed through self-assessment or a tax code adjustment.
Unclaimed higher-rate relief is one of the most common ways high earners quietly overpay tax, year after year.
The calculator above separates the two: what arrives on its own, and what arrives only if you ask.
Then there is the band the standard tables don't show. Between £100,000 and £125,140 the personal allowance tapers away at £1 for every £2. That makes each pound of income in this zone effectively taxed at 60%. A pension contribution that pulls your income back through the zone earns relief at the same 60%. For anyone earning just over £100,000, it is routinely the strongest tax planning available. It interacts with the tapered annual allowance at higher incomes. It also interacts with bonus sacrifice, where your employer offers it. Owner-directors should compare company contributions, which route around income tax entirely. Our wider guide to saving tax with pensions puts the routes side by side.
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At source vs claimed
20% is added to the pot automatically. The higher-rate and additional-rate portions only arrive through self-assessment or a tax code change, and every year, a meaningful share of it simply goes unclaimed.
The 60% zone
Between £100,000 and £125,140, the personal allowance taper makes effective relief 60%. A £10,000 contribution at £110,000 of income costs £4,000. No other mainstream planning gets close.
The route matters as much as the amount
Relief at source, salary sacrifice, or an employer contribution from the company, same pension, different tax outcomes. For owner-directors the company route usually wins, and it never needs a claim.
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Questions people ask about pension tax relief
How does pension tax relief work?
Contribute to a pension from taxed income and the tax you paid on that money comes back. With relief at source, you pay 80% of the gross amount. Your provider claims the other 20% from HMRC automatically. This is how personal pensions and SIPPs work. Higher and additional rate taxpayers can then claim a further 20% or 25% through self-assessment. In a workplace net-pay or salary sacrifice arrangement, the full relief happens through payroll instead. There is nothing to claim.
How do I claim higher-rate pension tax relief?
Through your self-assessment tax return, enter your gross personal contributions. This calculation extends your basic-rate band. If you don't file a return, ask HMRC to adjust your tax code instead.
You can also claim for the previous four tax years if you've missed it. For a consistent higher-rate contributor, this can be a five-figure refund.
The claim is not optional paperwork. Without it, you simply don't receive the money.
What is the 60% tax relief zone?
Between £100,000 and £125,140 of adjusted net income, the personal allowance is withdrawn at £1 for every £2. Each pound in that band suffers 40% tax plus the loss of tax free allowance. That is an effective 60%. A pension contribution reduces adjusted net income and rebuilds the allowance, earning 60% effective relief on the way through. Someone on £110,000 contributing £10,000 gets £6,000 of total relief: the contribution genuinely costs £4,000.
Is there a limit on pension tax relief?
Two. Personal contributions attract relief only up to 100% of your relevant UK earnings in the year. Dividends do not count, which is a key point for owner-directors. The annual allowance caps total pension funding at £60,000 for 2026/27. This tapers as low as £10,000 for high earners. Carry forward from three previous years is available on top. Exceed the allowance and a tax charge claws the relief back.
Is salary sacrifice better than claiming relief?
Usually, where it's available. Sacrificing salary into the pension gets full income tax relief automatically through payroll. There is nothing to claim. It also saves employee National Insurance on top. Many employers add some or all of their own NI saving. The trade-offs are a lower contractual salary and the need for your employer to offer it. A lower contractual salary can affect borrowing and some benefits. For owner-directors, an employer contribution from the company achieves a similar result with different mechanics.
Reviewed by
BSc, MLIBF, PETR, Chartered ALIBF · Co-Founder and Chartered Associate
Chris has spent over a decade in financial planning and specialises in research and technical analysis. He checks every figure and calculation on this page before it is published.
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A free, no-obligation conversation about the most tax-efficient way to fund your pension this year, and whether there's relief you've already missed. No cost, and no pressure to proceed.