Your situation
State Pension and your tax code
No code is attached to the State Pension itself: its tax is taken somewhere else, or billed after the year.
Taxable State Pension for the year
Taxable State Pension
£12,547.60
| 1 week at the old rate | £241.30 |
| 51 weeks at the new rate | £12,306.30 |
| Left of the Personal Allowance | £22 |
| Code if nothing else changes | 2L |
The State Pension has no tax code of its own, because it is paid in full with nothing deducted. It is still taxable income. HMRC adds it to your other income for the tax year and, if you work or draw a private pension, lowers the code on that other source so the tax comes out there (How your State Pension is taxed). The taxable figure is not what landed in your bank account but what you were entitled to: 1 week at the weekly rate before the April increase plus 51 weeks at the new rate, which applies to people whose State Pension started on or after 6 April 2010. The full new State Pension pays £241.30 a week for 2026 to 2027, so a full year at that rate counts as £12,547.60, just £22.40 below the £12,570 Personal Allowance. If it is your only income and it stays under the allowance, nothing is due. If tax is due and no other source can collect it, HMRC sends a Simple Assessment bill after the year ends.
Code on a workplace pension
Expected code on the pension
2L
| State Pension for the year | £12,548 |
| Tax due for the year | £2,995.40 |
| Taken by the pension with that code | £2,994.00 |
The State Pension is paid gross; its tax is collected through the code on your other pension or job.
Rules read on HMRC’s texts by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Method
From weekly payments to one taxable figure
State Pension rates usually change in April, close to the start of the tax year on 6 April. For a full year, HMRC counts 1 week at the old rate and 51 at the new one, and uses the amounts you were entitled to rather than the dates money arrived (DWP and HMRC). The calculator at the top of this page does exactly that sum: enter the weekly rate shown on your letter before April and the one after. The same total goes into a Self Assessment return if you send one.
When the State Pension starts during the year, only the weeks from the entitlement date count. With 20 weeks left in the tax year at the full rate, the taxable State Pension would be £4,826, even if the first payment arrived weeks later and covered the earlier period in one go.
Who collects the tax, depending on your other income
Not everyone gets the full rate: older awards and incomplete National Insurance records give smaller weekly amounts. The table counts a whole year at four weekly amounts, shows what remains of the allowance, then adds £15,000 of other income from a job or private pension in England or Northern Ireland to give the code on that source and the tax for the year on both.
| State Pension a week | Counted for the year | Allowance left | Code on the other income | Tax due on both |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| £241.30 | £12,547.60 | £22.40 | 2L | £2,995.40 |
| £200 | £10,400 | £2,170 | 217L | £2,566.00 |
| £160 | £8,320 | £4,250 | 425L | £2,150.00 |
| £120 | £6,240 | £6,330 | 633L | £1,734.00 |
Read the third column as the room left for other income before tax starts. A person on the full rate has almost none, so any other taxable income is taxed from close to the first pound. With a smaller State Pension, the other source keeps a larger part of its tax-free pay.
With other income, the code on that source starts from the allowance and takes away the State Pension. GOV.UK adds that when you have several employers or pension providers, only one of them deducts the tax for the State Pension. If the State Pension and other untaxed items together exceed the allowance, the result is a K code, which adds an amount to your pay rather than taking one off.
Code on a workplace pension
Expected code on the pension
2L
| State Pension for the year | £12,548 |
| Tax due for the year | £995.40 |
| Taken by the pension with that code | £994.20 |
The State Pension is paid gross; its tax is collected through the code on your other pension or job.
When no code can collect it
Some people have the State Pension and income that PAYE does not touch, or only a small pension that cannot absorb the extra tax. In that case HMRC may send a Simple Assessment calculation once the year is over (tax overpayments and underpayments). Those letters are sent between June and March, and each one states its own payment deadline. If you are registered for Self Assessment, the State Pension goes on your return instead and no separate letter follows.
When the weekly amount changes
GOV.UK lists a change in your weekly State Pension among the usual reasons for a new code. Each April increase therefore tends to bring a slightly lower number on the code of your private pension or job; HMRC tells employers and providers about codes for the new year between January and March. You may also see an emergency code in the first year you receive it, which GOV.UK describes as normal (emergency tax codes). If the yearly State Pension shown in your HMRC online account does not match your award letter, update it there: the code is only as accurate as that figure.