English
Play the UK tax game — legally, plainly, with receipts.
Rich people do not have magic. They know rules, wrappers, timing, residence and reliefs. TaxSorted teaches the game without helping anyone cheat it.
← TaxSortedGOV.UK Income Tax rates and Personal Allowances GOV.UK Capital Gains Tax rates and allowances GOV.UK policy paper: residence-based regime for foreign income and gains GOV.UK Business Asset Disposal Relief GOV.UK Tax on savings interest GOV.UK Individual Savings Accounts GOV.UK Inheritance Tax GOV.UK Pension annual allowance House of Commons Library: Fiscal drag explainer Office for Budget Responsibility: impact of frozen or reduced personal tax thresholds GOV.UK High Income Child Benefit Charge
UK personal tax · spicy but safe
Play the UK tax game — legally, plainly, with receipts.
Rich people do not have magic. They know rules, wrappers, timing, residence and reliefs. TaxSorted teaches the game without helping anyone cheat it.
Legal line: Optimisation is using the law accurately with records. Evasion is hiding income, lying, sham arrangements, fake residence, false invoices, or pretending personal spending is business. TaxSorted explains the system; it does not help anyone evade tax.
Language packs
繁中 / 港式
玩爆英國個税 — 合法、講人話、有 receipts。
有錢人唔係識魔法；佢哋識 rules、wrappers、timing、residence、reliefs。TaxSorted 教你睇穿個 game，但唔教人呃稅。
简中
把英国个人税规则玩明白 — 合法、清楚、有来源。
有钱人不是会魔法；他们懂规则、税务包装、时间安排、居住身份和减免。TaxSorted 教你看懂游戏，但不帮助逃税。
Polski
Graj w brytyjski podatek legalnie, jasno i z dowodami.
Bogaci nie mają magii. Znają zasady, wrappers, timing, residence i reliefs. TaxSorted uczy gry, ale nie pomaga oszukiwać.
हिन्दी
UK tax game खेलो — कानूनी, साफ़, receipts के साथ।
अमीर लोगों के पास magic नहीं; वे rules, wrappers, timing, residence और reliefs जानते हैं। TaxSorted खेल सिखाता है, cheating नहीं।
اردو
UK tax game کھیلیں — قانونی، صاف، receipts کے ساتھ۔
امیر لوگوں کے پاس جادو نہیں؛ وہ rules، wrappers، timing، residence اور reliefs جانتے ہیں۔ TaxSorted کھیل سکھاتا ہے، cheating نہیں۔
Personal allowance
£12,570
Then tapers after £100k adjusted net income.
ISA allowance
£20,000
A legal wrapper, not a magic loophole.
CGT annual exemption
£3,000
Tiny compared with the asset game.
Same £80k, different lane
This is the core pattern: work is taxed as income, wealth may be realised as gains. Same pounds, different lane. This simplified engine ignores NI, student loans, Scottish rates, and special reliefs — it is a teaching lens, not filing advice.
£80k as employment income
£19,432
Income Tax only · effective 24%
£80k as capital gain
£16,218
CGT only · effective 20%
Difference
£3,214
Not magic. Different rules.
The £100k trap
At £110k, the teaching engine shows £5,000 of personal allowance lost. The marginal Income Tax-only rate in this band is about 60% — before National Insurance or student loan effects.
Threshold scanner — legal levers, no fake loopholes
The engine scans adjusted net income pressure points and suggests lawful moves with caveats. No hiding income, no sham invoices, no pretend residence.
£70k + 2 children
£1,169
Estimated HICBC at 50% clawback; first move targets £60,000 ANI.
£112k income
£6,000
Personal Allowance lost; suggested gross ANI reduction £12,000.
- Target the £100,000 Personal Allowance line: Consider gross pension contributions, salary sacrifice, or Gift Aid planning to reduce adjusted net income toward £100,000.
- Bring adjusted net income back to £60,000: Consider gross pension contributions or salary sacrifice before tax year end.
- Do not skip the Child Benefit claim just because of HICBC: If payments are opted out, still consider claiming to protect National Insurance credits and automatic NI number issue for the child.
Deep into UK tax politics
Deep politics: who wrote the game board?
UK personal tax is politics expressed as thresholds. The loud fight is rates; the quiet machinery is frozen allowances, clawbacks and who gets timing choices.
Fiscal drag
Freezing allowances and thresholds can raise tax without raising headline rates: inflation/wage growth pulls more people into tax or higher bands.
Why it matters: It is politically quieter than saying 'we raised Income Tax', but it changes who pays and how much.
Cliff edges and tapers
The system is full of thresholds: £60k/£80k Child Benefit charge, £100k Personal Allowance taper, pension taper and allowance traps.
Why it matters: People with advisers can plan around thresholds; people without advice often only notice after payroll or Self Assessment bites.
Choice inequality
Tax planning often comes from choice: when to realise gains, whether to use a wrapper, how to structure work, and whether income can be deferred or sacrificed.
Why it matters: The more control someone has over timing and form, the more legal planning tools they can use.
TaxSorted playground
Make UK tax fun — and still keep it clean.
Learn the allowances, traps and political moves that shape your payslip. Play hard with the rules; never fake the facts.
Language
English · English
Use the globe switcher above to change the whole site.
No evasion. No fake invoices. No hidden income. This is lawful clarity, not grey-scheme cosplay.
Learn to play — legally
Personal Allowance shield
The first slice of income can be tax-free — but the shield melts after £100k adjusted net income.
Play: Play: model pension/Gift Aid before the cliff, not after payroll has already swallowed the bonus.
Clean line: Use real contributions and records only.
ISA forcefield
A boring wrapper that can make future interest, dividends and gains much less annoying.
Play: Play: shelter before compounding gets spicy.
Clean line: Stay within ISA rules and annual limits.
Child Benefit trapdoor
The charge is based on adjusted net income — not vibes, not household fairness, the rules.
Play: Play: check who has the higher adjusted net income before making claim/repayment choices.
Clean line: Do not stop claims blindly; National Insurance credits can matter.
Deep into UK tax politics
Fiscal drag: the stealth boss
When thresholds freeze while wages/prices rise, more income gets pulled into tax without a headline rate rise.
Why politics matters: This is politics in spreadsheet form: a tax rise that often feels like gravity.
Move: Action: know your marginal band before bonuses, pay rises and pension decisions.
The big three pay for the state
Income Tax, National Insurance and VAT are the giant receipts machines. That is why tiny threshold changes matter.
Why politics matters: Tax politics is not only rates; it is what base gets squeezed and who notices.
Move: Action: read policy through receipts: who pays, who collects, who can move?
Budget speech is not the final boss
Announcements become law through resolutions, Finance Bills, amendments and HMRC guidance.
Why politics matters: Between speech and law, detail moves. That is where politics, lobbying and drafting matter.
Move: Action: treat Budget day as a weather alert; wait for legislation before filing strategy.
Receipts, not vibes
GOV.UK Income Tax rates and Personal AllowancesGOV.UK Individual Savings AccountsGOV.UK High Income Child Benefit ChargeHouse of Commons Library: Fiscal dragHouse of Commons Library: Tax statistics overviewHMRC tax receipts and NICs annual bulletinHouse of Commons Library: Budget 2025 and Finance Bill
The plays
十萬鎊位，表面40%，實際好似60%咁咬你 😂
£100k personal allowance trap — stealth 60% band
English: The £100k trap: effective 60% Income Tax-only band before NI/student loans.
繁中 / 港式: £100k trap：表面 40%，因 personal allowance taper，Income Tax-only 邊際可以似 60%。
简中: £100k 陷阱：表面 40%，因为个人免税额递减，所得税边际效果可接近 60%。
Polski: Pułapka £100k: przez taper Personal Allowance marginalny Income Tax-only efekt może wyglądać jak 60%.
हिन्दी: £100k trap: Personal Allowance taper की वजह से Income Tax-only marginal effect लगभग 60% जैसा लग सकता है।
اردو: £100k trap: Personal Allowance taper کی وجہ سے Income Tax-only marginal effect تقریباً 60% جیسا لگ سکتا ہے۔
How it works: Between £100,000 and about £125,140 adjusted net income, the personal allowance is withdrawn £1 for every £2 over the threshold. That makes an extra £1 of income expose extra taxable income, producing an effective marginal rate around 60% before National Insurance or student loan effects.
Who can play hard: High earners with control over pension contributions, gift aid timing, salary sacrifice, bonus timing or company/director remuneration.
Your counter-move: If you are near £100k, learn adjusted net income. Pension contributions and Gift Aid can sometimes restore allowance, but cashflow and annual allowance matter.
Legal line: Legit: real pension/Gift Aid/salary-sacrifice arrangements documented properly. Not legit: fake donations, backdated documents, or hiding income.
打工錢即刻收稅；資產升值可以揀時機先賣。呢個就係game位。
Income vs gains — work gets one lane, wealth another
English: Work income and capital gains run through different lanes; ownership often has timing choices wages do not.
繁中 / 港式: 打工錢同資產增值係唔同 lane；有資產通常有 timing choice，打工通常冇。
简中: 工资收入和资本收益走不同通道；资产通常有时间选择，工资通常没有。
Polski: Dochód z pracy i capital gains jadą innymi pasami; ownership często ma timing choices, wages zwykle nie.
हिन्दी: Work income और capital gains अलग lanes में चलते हैं; ownership में timing choices होती हैं, wages में कम।
اردو: Work income اور capital gains الگ lanes میں چلتے ہیں؛ ownership میں timing choices ہوتی ہیں، wages میں کم۔
How it works: Employment income can hit 40%/45% Income Tax plus National Insurance, while capital gains are taxed under separate CGT rules, with an annual exempt amount and rates that can be lower depending on asset and income band.
Who can play hard: People with investable assets, company shares, property or carried interests who can choose when and how gains are realised.
Your counter-move: Understand the difference, use lawful wrappers like ISA/pension where suitable, and keep basis/acquisition records so gains are not guessed later.
Legal line: Legit: planning disposals and using allowances. Not legit: hiding disposals, understating sale proceeds, inventing acquisition costs.
ISA係平民都用得嘅合法shield，但每年有£20k先有得shield得盡。
ISA wrapper — simple legal shelter, but unequal in practice
English: ISA is a simple legal wrapper: boring, powerful, unequal in practice because spare cash matters.
繁中 / 港式: ISA 係合法 shield：悶但勁；現實上有閒錢先用得盡。
简中: ISA 是合法保护壳：朴素但有效；现实中有余钱的人更能用满。
Polski: ISA to legalna tarcza: nudna, mocna, ale w praktyce nierówna, bo spare cash ma znaczenie.
हिन्दी: ISA legal shield है: boring लेकिन powerful; practice में unequal क्योंकि spare cash matter करता है।
اردو: ISA legal shield ہے: boring مگر powerful؛ practice میں unequal کیونکہ spare cash matter کرتا ہے۔
How it works: Within ISA rules, eligible savings/investments can grow free of UK Income Tax and CGT. The wrapper is simple and legal, but the biggest benefit goes to people who can afford to fill allowances consistently.
Who can play hard: People with spare cash/investments who can use the allowance every year and leave growth compounding.
Your counter-move: If you save or invest, check whether an ISA is appropriate before using a taxable account. Even partial use can reduce future paperwork.
Legal line: Legit: using authorised ISA accounts within annual rules. Not legit: breaching subscription rules or misdescribing account status.
以前non-dom玩得好盡；而家改咗做4年FIG，但residence仍然係大招。
Non-dom → FIG regime — residence is a tax lever
English: Residence is a tax lever: the old non-dom remittance basis became a residence-based FIG regime from April 2025.
繁中 / 港式: Residence 係大招：舊 non-dom remittance basis 由 2025 年 4 月起改成 residence-based FIG regime。
简中: Residence 是关键杠杆：旧 non-dom remittance basis 从 2025 年 4 月起改为 residence-based FIG regime。
Polski: Residence to mocna dźwignia: dawny non-dom remittance basis od kwietnia 2025 zastąpił residence-based FIG regime.
हिन्दी: Residence बड़ा lever है: पुराना non-dom remittance basis April 2025 से residence-based FIG regime बना।
اردو: Residence بڑا lever ہے: پرانا non-dom remittance basis April 2025 سے residence-based FIG regime بنا۔
How it works: From 6 April 2025, the remittance basis was replaced by a residence-based regime for foreign income and gains. Qualifying new UK residents may receive a four-year FIG regime; long-term globally mobile people still need residence/treaty planning.
Who can play hard: Internationally mobile high-net-worth people with foreign income/gains, advisers and ability to choose where/when they become resident.
Your counter-move: If you move to/from the UK, do not guess residence. Read the official rules and get advice before arrival/disposal/remittance decisions.
Legal line: Legit: accurate residence and FIG claims. Not legit: fake residence, undeclared remittances, or pretending funds were clean without records.
賣公司有機會低CGT rate，打工bonus就冇呢種exit lane。
Business Asset Disposal Relief — founder exit discount
English: Founder exits can have their own CGT lane if BADR conditions are met; eligibility matters before the sale, not after.
繁中 / 港式: Founder exit 有機會走自己嘅 CGT lane，但 BADR conditions 要賣之前已經 meet，唔係事後補戲。
简中: Founder exit 可能有自己的 CGT 通道，但 BADR 条件要在出售前满足，不是事后补材料。
Polski: Founder exit może mieć osobny pas CGT, jeśli warunki BADR są spełnione przed sprzedażą, nie po fakcie.
हिन्दी: Founder exit की अपनी CGT lane हो सकती है अगर BADR conditions sale से पहले meet हों, बाद में नहीं।
اردو: Founder exit کی اپنی CGT lane ہو سکتی ہے اگر BADR conditions sale سے پہلے meet ہوں، بعد میں نہیں۔
How it works: BADR can reduce CGT on qualifying business disposals up to a lifetime limit. The rate was 10%, rose to 14% from 6 April 2025, and rises to 18% from 6 April 2026 under current GOV.UK guidance.
Who can play hard: Business owners/founders with qualifying shares or business assets and the ability to structure a disposal around eligibility rules.
Your counter-move: If you own a business, know the conditions early. If you do not, understand that some tax breaks attach to ownership exits, not wages.
Legal line: Legit: meeting the conditions for qualifying assets/shares. Not legit: papering over ownership, officer, employee or trading conditions after the fact.
遺產稅唔係淨係死嗰刻，係生前已經開始玩時間同threshold。
IHT threshold planning — transfers, gifts, timing
English: IHT is a timing-and-records game: real gifts, honest valuations, wills and thresholds matter years before death.
繁中 / 港式: IHT 係 timing 加 records game：真 gift、誠實 valuation、will 同 thresholds，死之前好多年已經重要。
简中: IHT 是 timing 和 records game：真实赠与、诚实估值、遗嘱和 thresholds，往往在去世前多年就重要。
Polski: IHT to gra czasu i dokumentów: prawdziwe gifts, uczciwe valuations, wills i thresholds liczą się lata wcześniej.
हिन्दी: IHT timing और records का game है: real gifts, honest valuations, wills और thresholds कई साल पहले matter करते हैं।
اردو: IHT timing اور records کا game ہے: real gifts، honest valuations، wills اور thresholds کئی سال پہلے matter کرتے ہیں۔
How it works: Inheritance Tax uses thresholds, rates, exemptions, gifts and residence/nil-rate rules. Larger estates can plan transfers, gifts and structures around timing and documentation.
Who can play hard: Families with estates above thresholds, property, trusts, advisers and time to plan years ahead.
Your counter-move: Keep records of gifts, wills and estate values. If a home or family transfer is involved, check the official thresholds before assuming nothing matters.
Legal line: Legit: real gifts and honest valuation/reporting. Not legit: sham ownership, hidden assets, or pretending control was given up when it was not.
Pension唔只退休，仲係高收入人調整taxable income嘅工具。
Pension relief and timing — tax now vs later
English: Pensions are retirement first and tax timing second: powerful near cliffs, but annual allowance and taper rules bite.
繁中 / 港式: Pension 第一係退休，第二先係 tax timing：近 cliff 好有力，但 annual allowance 同 taper 會咬人。
简中: Pension 首先是退休，其次才是 tax timing：接近 cliff 时有力，但 annual allowance 和 taper 会咬人。
Polski: Pension jest najpierw emeryturą, potem tax timing: mocne przy klifach, ale annual allowance i taper gryzą.
हिन्दी: Pension पहले retirement है, फिर tax timing: cliffs के पास powerful, पर annual allowance और taper bite करते हैं।
اردو: Pension پہلے retirement ہے، پھر tax timing: cliffs کے پاس powerful، مگر annual allowance اور taper bite کرتے ہیں۔
How it works: Pension contributions can receive tax relief and can reduce adjusted net income, which matters for thresholds such as the £100k personal allowance taper. Annual allowance, taper and carry-forward rules limit the play.
Who can play hard: Higher earners with cashflow and pension headroom, especially those near threshold cliffs.
Your counter-move: Learn the annual allowance before contributing large amounts. Use pensions for retirement first, tax optimisation second.
Legal line: Legit: real pension contributions within rules. Not legit: circular/fake arrangements or ignoring annual allowance/taper charges.
Source ledger
Every spicy claim has a receipt and a boundary.
Supports: UK personal allowance and Income Tax bands/rates for England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The personal allowance is reduced by £1 for every £2 of adjusted net income over £100,000.
Does not prove: Scottish income tax rates for non-savings/non-dividend income. That a specific person has no other allowances, reliefs or tapered effects.
Supports: Capital gains rates can differ from Income Tax rates. Current annual exempt amount and rates depend on asset type and income band.
Does not prove: That a disposal qualifies for a particular relief. That losses or residence rules are fully accounted for.
Supports: The former remittance basis for non-domiciled individuals was replaced by a residence-based foreign income and gains regime from 6 April 2025. The new four-year FIG regime can provide relief for qualifying new UK residents.
Does not prove: That every internationally mobile person qualifies. That treaty, remittance, trust or transitional rules are simple.
Supports: Business Asset Disposal Relief can reduce the CGT rate on qualifying business disposals up to a lifetime limit. Rates changed from 6 April 2025 and 6 April 2026.
Does not prove: That a specific shareholding, office-holder status or trading company condition is satisfied. That all business sales qualify.
Supports: Savings interest can be covered by starting rate, personal savings allowance, ISA sheltering or taxed otherwise.
Does not prove: That a particular account is an ISA or that the person has unused allowance.
Supports: ISAs shelter eligible savings/investments from UK Income Tax and Capital Gains Tax within subscription rules.
Does not prove: That ISA sheltering benefits everyone equally. That the visitor can or should use the full annual allowance.
Supports: Inheritance Tax has thresholds, exemptions and rates that make estate planning highly threshold-sensitive.
Does not prove: That an estate owes IHT or that a gift is exempt without facts.
Supports: Pension tax relief and annual allowance rules can make pension contributions a major planning lever.
Does not prove: That a specific contribution is advisable or within allowance after taper/carry-forward rules.
Supports: Fiscal drag describes frozen or slow-rising thresholds pulling more people into tax or higher rates as incomes rise.
Does not prove: That any specific individual owes more tax without running their figures.
Supports: Frozen or reduced personal-tax thresholds raise receipts by bringing more people into tax and higher rates as nominal incomes rise.
Does not prove: That fiscal drag is illegal or avoidable by artificial steps.
Supports: The High Income Child Benefit Charge threshold and clawback mechanics.
Does not prove: That a household should stop claiming Child Benefit without considering NI credits.