{"slug":"uk-universal-credit-taper","name":"UK Universal Credit Taper — Does Working More Pay?","category":"everyday","tags":["income","family","planning"],"region":"GB","tagline":"What an extra shift or pay rise really leaves you on Universal Credit — the 55% taper, the work allowance you may not have, and the pension trick.","endpoint":"https://xearno.tools/api/v1/tools/uk-universal-credit-taper","page":"https://xearno.tools/t/uk-universal-credit-taper","description":"Computes your Universal Credit payment at your current net earnings and at your earnings plus the raise or extra shift you are weighing — showing exactly how much of the extra you keep after the 55% taper. The taper applies to NET earnings (after tax, NI, and 100% of pension contributions), the work allowance only exists for households with children or limited capability for work, and whether your UC includes a housing element switches that allowance between £427 and £710 a month. General AI gets all three wrong: it tapers gross pay, hands everyone an allowance, and quotes outdated rates.","inputSchema":{"type":"object","properties":{"household":{"description":"Your household Sets the standard allowance — the base of your maximum UC award. Couples claim jointly and their earnings are combined.","type":"string","enum":["single25","singleU25","couple25","coupleU25"],"default":"single25"},"hasChildren":{"description":"Children on the claim? The work-allowance gate. Only households responsible for a child OR with limited capability for work (LCW/LCWRA after a Work Capability Assessment) get a work allowance. Answer \"yes\" if either applies. Everyone else is tapered from the first pound of net earnings.","type":"string","enum":["yes","no"],"default":"yes"},"housingElement":{"description":"Does your UC include a housing element? The hidden switch. If your UC award includes help with housing costs, your work allowance is £427/month; with no housing element it is £710. Check your UC statement, not your tenancy — it is about what is IN the award.","type":"string","enum":["yes","no"],"default":"yes"},"netMonthlyEarnings":{"description":"Your net monthly earnings (take-home) (£) Take-home pay per assessment month — after income tax, National Insurance, AND 100% of your pension contributions. UC tapers NET earnings, not gross: this is the number on your bank statement, and pension contributions reduce it pound-for-pound.","type":"number","minimum":0,"default":1200},"extraEarnings":{"description":"Extra net earnings you are considering (£) The raise, extra shift, or overtime you are weighing — as extra NET (take-home) pay per month. The tool shows how much of it survives the taper.","type":"number","minimum":0,"default":200},"otherElements":{"description":"Other UC elements on your statement (£) Child, housing, disability, and carer elements from your UC statement — add them so the taper math starts from your real maximum award. Left at 0, the tool uses only the standard allowance and will understate your actual payment (though the keep-rate on extra earnings is unaffected while UC stays above £0).","type":"number","minimum":0,"default":0}},"required":[],"additionalProperties":false},"methodology":["The taper: your Universal Credit is reduced by 55p for every £1 of NET earnings above your work allowance — reduction = 55% × max(0, net earnings − work allowance). Net means after income tax, National Insurance, and 100% of pension contributions. Applying the taper to gross pay is the single most common mistake (and one general AI makes routinely).","Work allowances 2026-27: £427/month if your UC award includes a housing element, £710/month if it does not. The allowance exists ONLY for households responsible for a child or with limited capability for work (LCW/LCWRA) — all other claimants have no allowance and are tapered from the first pound.","Standard allowances 2026-27 (monthly): single under 25 £338.58; single 25+ £424.90; couple both under 25 £528.34; couple with one 25+ £666.97 (joint). Your maximum award = standard allowance + your other elements (child, housing, disability, carer) — enter those from your UC statement, because with them left at 0 the payment shown understates your real award.","Payment = max(0, maximum award − taper reduction). The keep-rate on extra earnings compares the actual payment at current and higher earnings, so it is correct even when the extra pushes UC to £0 partway (the keep-rate then rises above 45%).","UC reaches £0 at net earnings of work allowance + maximum award ÷ 0.55. Past that point extra earnings face no taper at all.","Pension contributions are disregarded in full: £1 contributed reduces countable net earnings by £1, restoring 55p of UC. Combined with basic-rate relief at source (80p buys £1 in the pot), £1 of pension saving costs about 25p for a claimant on the taper.","Noted but not computed: the childcare element (85% of registered costs up to £1,071.09/£1,836.16 a month), the benefit cap, transitional protection for managed migration from legacy benefits, deductions for advances/debts, and the capital rules (savings over £6,000 reduce UC; over £16,000 end it)."],"usage":"POST https://xearno.tools/api/v1/tools/uk-universal-credit-taper with a JSON body matching inputSchema."}