NHS annual allowance calculator 2026/27
NHS Pension Scheme members, and hospital consultants in particular, can face an annual allowance charge without any change in what they pay in, because the figure that counts is the growth in promised benefits rather than a contribution. This tool works through the position for 2026/27 one step at a time: how much your pension grew, whether the taper applies to you, what carry forward is left from the previous three years, whether a charge arises, what the options are, and what next year looks like.
Most people are not affected, and the first two steps say so plainly when that is the case. Nothing you enter is saved or sent anywhere.
NHS annual allowance check
Tax year 2026/27. Most people are not affected, and this tells you within two steps.
How much did your NHS pension grow this year?
The definitive figure is on an NHSBSA annual allowance pension savings statement. NHSBSA only issues one automatically where growth exceeds £60,000, so if your allowance may be tapered you will probably need to request it.
Figures correct as at 2026/27. Nothing you enter is saved or sent anywhere, and it is lost if you refresh the page unless you download it. This is general information, not financial or tax advice. NHSBSA figures are the definitive source for pension growth, and carry forward here assumes nothing was available from before the three year window.
Who this calculator is for
Consultants, GPs, dentists and senior NHS staff with pensionable pay, additional sessions, awards or private practice income, and anyone who has been sent an NHSBSA pension savings statement and is unsure what it means. It is also useful before a decision about additional sessions, a salary sacrifice scheme or a personal pension contribution.
The 2026/27 rules it uses
- Standard annual allowance of £60,000 for 2026/27.
- Threshold income at or below £200,000 means the taper cannot apply, whatever adjusted income is.
- Above that, adjusted income over £260,000 reduces the allowance by £1 for every £2, down to a floor of £10,000.
- Carry forward from 2023/24, 2024/25 and 2025/26, using the tapered allowance that applied in each of those years rather than the standard figure NHSBSA statements show.
- Mandatory scheme pays requires a charge above £2,000 and growth above the standard £60,000 allowance. A taper only breach leaves voluntary scheme pays, with an earlier NHSBSA deadline.
- Growth estimates use Total Reward Statement figures and do not account for the McCloud remedy. An NHSBSA pension savings statement is the definitive source.
Frequently asked questions
Why does NHSBSA say I am fine when this says I may face a charge?
NHSBSA produces statements against the standard £60,000 allowance and cannot see private practice profit or other income, so it cannot apply the taper. If your allowance is tapered, your real allowance is lower than the one on the statement.
Does exceeding the allowance always mean a charge?
No. Unused allowance from the previous three tax years can absorb the excess. This tool works out the carry forward position using the tapered allowance for each of those years before it calculates any charge.
Is anything I type here stored?
No. Figures stay in the browser for the session only and are lost when you refresh or close the page. If you want to keep them, download the file at the end; that file is created in your browser and is not uploaded anywhere.
An estimate for general information, not financial or tax advice. NHSBSA figures are the definitive source for pension growth, and annual allowance calculations involving the taper are worth having checked.