How much employer National Insurance is due on a £100,000 salary in 2026/27?

Full answer

For 2026/27, employers pay Class 1 secondary National Insurance at 15% on each employee's earnings above the secondary threshold of £5,000 a year, with no upper earnings limit -- unlike employee National Insurance, which drops from 8% to 2% above £50,270, employer NI keeps applying at the full 15% on every pound of salary above £5,000, however high the salary. On a £100,000 salary the employer pays 15% of £95,000 (£100,000 minus £5,000), which is £14,250. This is a cost on top of the salary and is not deducted from the employee's pay, making the true cost of employing someone on a £100,000 salary £114,250 before any pension contributions or other benefits are added. The Employment Allowance, £10,500 for 2026/27, can offset employer NI but is shared across the whole payroll and unavailable to some single-director companies, so it makes little dent in the total employer NI bill for a business with several staff at this salary level. Salary sacrifice pension contributions reduce employer NI as well as the employee's own Income Tax and NI, and because there is no upper limit on the 15% employer rate, sacrificing salary above £50,270 saves the employer a full 15% regardless of how high the salary already is. Use the Employer NI calculator to work out the total cost of employing someone at any salary.

More answers

• How much employer National Insurance is due on a £60,000 salary in 2026/27?
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