With the 5th of April 2026 fast approaching, it could be worth making a last-minute check of your allowances to see where you might be able to get the most of them before the tax year ends.

Pension Contributions – how it works

For the 2025/26 tax year, the pension allowance is £60,000. This meant you are able to contribute up to £48,000 into your pension pot and receive an additional 25% bonus from the government. For every £4 you contribute up to this amount the government would contribute £1 in return, up to combined total of £60,000.

Whilst you can contribute more than this, you won’t receive any additional bonus from the government after going over £48,000. The bonus is automatically claimed by your pension provider so you aren’t required to do anything further to receive this.

If you pay tax above the basic-rate however, you’re actually entitled to claim additional amount on your contributions. Whilst you will still receive the 25% bonus, the additional amount isn’t automatically processed by your pension provider, and the amount is in the form of tax relief, rather than a bonus:

• You can claim an additional 20% tax relief up to the amount of income you have paid 40% tax on.
• You can claim an additional 25% relief up to the amount of income you’ve paid 45% tax on.

In practice, you can claim these additional reliefs by preparing and submitting a self-assessment tax return detailing your contributions and salaried income.

It’s worth being mindful when considering your pension contributions for the year that you can only claim additional relief on amounts earned equal to the value of your contributions over the tax-rate thresholds. For example, if you were to earn £55,270 in the year, but contribute £7,000 into your pension scheme, you would only receive additional relief on the first £5,000, leaving £2,000 unused.

How do I contribute?

You can either contribute through your salary – and with automatic enrolment in place most people earning through PAYE are already paying something into a pension scheme - or make a direct contribution yourself in cash.

If you are due any bonuses before the end of the tax year, you could also request your employer pays them directly into your pension scheme, rather than through your payslip. This would help you avoid paying both Income Tax and National Insurance on your bonus, whilst boosting your pension contributions at the same time.

What if I miss the deadline?

If you do miss the end of year deadline for contributing to your pension scheme, not to worry. There is a rolling three year period in which you can carry forward any unused pension allowances to the current year, but be aware – you won’t be able to earn any tax relief for contributions that exceed your total relevant earnings for the year in which you make the contribution, so take this in mind and plan accordingly.