Pension Input Amount Calculator UK (2026) — Annual Allowance

What is a pension input amount?

The pension input amount (PIA) is the increase in the value of your pension rights over a pension input period (PIP), which is usually the tax year. The total PIA across all your pensions counts against your annual allowance.

Annual allowance 2026

The standard annual allowance is £60,000 for 2026. If your total PIA exceeds this, you face an annual allowance charge — the excess is added to your income and taxed at your marginal rate. Carry forward from the previous 3 years is available.

How the PIA is calculated

For defined contribution schemes: contributions paid in (gross of tax relief). For defined benefit schemes: increase in value × 16 (the standard valuation factor). For hybrid schemes: calculated separately for each section.

Money Purchase Annual Allowance (MPAA)

If you have flexibly accessed your pension, the MPAA applies (£10,000 in 2026). This is much lower than the standard annual allowance and severely limits further pension contributions.

Carry forward rules

You can carry forward unused annual allowance from the previous 3 tax years. The current year is used first, then the earliest of the 3 previous years. This is useful if you have a one-off large contribution year (e.g., after selling a business).

Tapered annual allowance

For high earners (adjusted income over £260,000 in 2026), the annual allowance is tapered. The minimum allowance is £10,000 for those with adjusted income over £360,000. The taper reduces the allowance by £1 for every £2 of income above £260,000.