US EditionHMRC Personal Tax Allowance Update as '2m More in Higher Band'
HMRC said 5.76 million people paid the 40% rate in 2023/24 as frozen thresholds pushed more taxpayers into higher bands.
- HMRC figures show nearly two million people have moved into the higher-rate income tax band since the start of the decade, with 5.8 million paying the higher-rate in 2023/24.
- Frozen tax thresholds and rising incomes have driven this expansion. The higher-rate threshold has remained fixed at £50,271 since 2021/22, while the personal allowance stayed at £12,570.
- Additional-Rate taxpayers earning over £125,140 surged 57% year-on-year to 893,000 in 2023/24, accounting for 37.7% of total Government tax raised despite comprising just 2.4% of all taxpayers.
- Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves announced at the Budget in November 2025 that the freeze will extend until 2030/31, intensifying fiscal drag for millions of earners.
- Sarah Coles, head of personal finance at Bell, noted that almost eight million pension-reliant people pay £24 billion in tax annually, with nearly half a million of these paying the higher-rate.
15 Articles
15 Articles
Daily Mirror
The Business TimesKey HMRC personal tax allowance update after Rachel Reeves decision
Frozen tax thresholds have pushed millions more into higher and additional-rate income tax
TeessideLive
Cambridge NewsHMRC personal tax allowance update as '2m more in higher band'
The tax-free threshold hasn't changed since 2021
Tax alert: HMRC admits MILLIONS pay higher tax due to 'unchanged' policy backed by Rachel Reeves
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Number of higher and additional‑rate taxpayers soar as frozen thresholds reshape the taxpaying public, says Quilter's Rachael Griffin
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Number of top rate taxpayers surges as frozen thresholds squeeze Brits
The number of higher and additional rate taxpayers in the UK has soared since the start of the decade as frozen thresholds have dragged nearly two million into paying higher rates of tax despite not being classified as traditional high-paid professionals. According to the latest personal income statistics from HMRC covering the 2023/24 tax year, the number of higher-rate taxpayers increased by 654,000, a 12.8 per cent increase, to total 5.7m. Me…
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