At the legal minimum, 8% of your qualifying earnings goes in: at least 3% from your employer and the rest from you, including tax relief. On a £30,000 salary in 2026/27, that comes to £1,900.80 a year, or about 6.3% of your full pay.
The percentage is easy to remember and easy to misread. GOV.UK sets the minimums at 8% in total, with at least 3% from your employer, on pre-tax earnings between £6,240 and £50,270. The Pensions Regulator gives the same band for 2026/27, or £520 to £4,189 a month. Your own scheme may pay more, so this is the floor and your scheme's rules take priority.
Why 8% is rarely 8% of your salary
The band leaves out your first £6,240 of pay, and anything above £50,270. Qualifying earnings can include salary, wages, bonuses, commission and overtime, as well as several kinds of statutory pay.
The sum for three salaries
| Salary | £18,000 | £30,000 | £60,000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Qualifying earnings | £11,760 | £23,760 | £44,030 |
| From your pay (4%) | £470.40 | £950.40 | £1,761.20 |
| Tax relief (1%) | £117.60 | £237.60 | £440.30 |
| Employer (3%) | £352.80 | £712.80 | £1,320.90 |
| Into the pension | £940.80 | £1,900.80 | £3,522.40 |
Our arithmetic. The split follows the GOV.UK example of £40 from you, £30 from your employer and £10 in tax relief, making £80. Assumes the scheme uses the qualifying earnings band.
The £60,000 row shows the cap at work: above £50,270, the minimum stops growing. So 8% of a £60,000 salary would be £4,800, while the legal minimum is £3,522.40.
Worth noticing is what the money costs you. On £30,000, £950.40 leaves your pay and £1,900.80 arrives in the pension. That doesn't tell you whether the scheme is right for you or how the investments will do, but it is the reason people are often told to check before opting out.
How tax relief reaches the pot
There are two common routes, and your payslip will look different depending on which one your scheme uses.
Relief at source
Your provider claims relief at the basic 20% rate and adds it to your pot. Your contribution comes out of pay after tax. People who pay no income tax still get the addition with this kind of scheme, which GOV.UK confirms. Higher and additional rate taxpayers can claim the extra through Self Assessment: GOV.UK lists 20% on the amount you paid 40% tax on and 25% on the amount you paid 45% tax on.
Contributions taken before tax
With this route, your employer takes the contribution from your pay before income tax is worked out, so relief comes through a smaller tax bill. If you want to check your own payslip against our income tax sums, this is why the income tax line may look lower than expected.
Relief applies on contributions up to 100% of your annual earnings. Other limits apply at high contribution levels, so check before paying in large amounts.
Who gets enrolled, and how to leave
Employers must automatically enrol workers aged between 22 and State Pension age who earn at least £10,000 a year. If you earn less, you may still be able to join, though employers don't have to contribute if you earn £520 a month or less.
You can opt out at any time. Timing matters: within a month of being added, you get back what you paid in. After that, your contributions usually stay in the pension until you retire. Your employer must re-enrol you every 3 years if you still qualify, and it can't encourage or force you to opt out.
If you change your mind later, you can opt back in at any time by writing to your employer. It doesn't have to accept you if you have already opted in and out within the past 12 months.
Where the State Pension fits in
A workplace pension sits on top of the State Pension, which runs on your National Insurance record and not on your salary. The full new State Pension is £241.30 a week (the 2026/27 rate), which comes to £12,547.60 over 52 weeks.
You usually need 35 qualifying years for the full rate, and at least 10 qualifying years to get any. Your record may look different if you were contracted out before April 2016. The GOV.UK forecast service shows what you could get, when you could get it, and whether you can increase it.
What to check on your own scheme
- Whether contributions are worked out on qualifying earnings or on a wider measure of pay.
- Whether your employer will pay more if you do. Your contract or staff handbook should say.
- Which tax relief route the scheme uses.
- How the pot is invested, and what charges apply. Your annual statement is the place to look.
Any pot should sit alongside a cash buffer, because money in a pension generally can't be reached quickly. See our guide to emergency savings.
This article is general education. It can't tell you how much you personally should save or which investments suit you. For that, speak to a regulated financial adviser, or to your scheme's provider about how the scheme itself works.