Employer National Insurance Rates UK 2026/27

The 2026/27 employer NI rate and how to calculate it

Employer National Insurance contributions for 2026/27 are charged at 15% on employee earnings above the secondary threshold of £5,000 per year (£96.15 per week). This rate has applied since April 2025, when it increased from 13.8% and the threshold dropped from £9,100 to £5,000. There is no upper earnings limit on employer NI — unlike employee NI which drops to 2% above £50,270, employer NI continues at 15% on all earnings above £5,000.

The formula is straightforward: employer NI = (gross salary − £5,000) × 15%. At £25,000, that gives £3,000 per year (£250/month). At £35,000: (£35,000 − £5,000) × 0.15 = £4,500 per year (£375/month). At £50,000: £6,750 per year (£562.50/month). At £80,000: £11,250 per year (£937.50/month). Employer NI is a separate cost on top of gross salary — it does not reduce employee take-home pay.

Employer NI is part of Class 1 employer contributions. It is paid to HMRC monthly or quarterly through PAYE and is separate from employee Class 1 NI, which is deducted from the employee's gross pay. Most payroll software calculates and reports both automatically. The secondary threshold applies per employment — if an employee holds two jobs with the same employer, each is assessed separately in most cases.

Employer NI at common salary levels (2026/27)

At the 2026/27 National Living Wage (£12.21/hr, approximately £23,810/year for a 37.5-hour week): employer NI = (£23,810 − £5,000) × 0.15 = £2,822 per year (£235/month). Adding 3% minimum employer pension on qualifying earnings gives approximately £532 additional cost, placing total above-salary cost at approximately £3,354.

At £30,000: employer NI is £3,750/year. At £35,000: £4,500/year. At £40,000: £5,250/year. At £45,000: £6,000/year. At £50,000: £6,750/year. At £60,000: £8,250/year. At £75,000: £10,500/year. At £100,000: £14,250/year. These figures represent employer NI only; add employer pension (3% of qualifying earnings between £6,240 and £50,270 for auto-enrolment minimum) for total mandatory on-costs.

The jump from 2024/25 to 2026/27 rates was significant for lower-paid roles. Under 2024/25 rules, a £25,000 employee generated £2,193 employer NI per year. Under 2026/27 rules the same employee generates £3,000 — an increase of £807 per year (37%). For higher salaries, the proportional increase was smaller because the rate rose by only 1.2 percentage points. Any payroll budgets built on pre-April 2025 assumptions need revising.

Employment Allowance and employer NI exemptions

Employment Allowance lets eligible employers reduce their employer NI bill by up to £10,500 per tax year for 2026/27. Most UK businesses qualify: limited companies with at least one employee who is not a sole director, charities and community amateur sports clubs. Single-director companies with no other employees cannot claim. The allowance is claimed through payroll software (RTI) and applied against the employer NI liability each pay period until the £10,500 is exhausted.

For small employers, Employment Allowance can eliminate the entire NI bill. A business with two employees at £28,000 each generates approximately £6,900 employer NI per year — well within the £10,500 allowance. For larger employers, it offsets a portion. A team of six at £35,000 average generates approximately £27,000 employer NI — allowance covers £10,500, leaving a net liability of £16,500. Use the employer cost calculator to model your specific scenario with and without allowance applied.

Exemptions also apply for certain employee categories: employers pay 0% NI on employees under 21 and apprentices under 25, up to the Upper Secondary Threshold of £50,270. For eligible veterans in their first year of civilian employment, a 0% rate also applies up to £50,270. These reductions apply to the employer side only and are tracked separately in RTI submissions. If you employ staff in these categories, confirm your payroll software is applying the correct NI category letter.