NI category letters and the LEL/ST/PT/UEL bands for 2026/27

A UK payslip shows National Insurance as a single line, but two things decide the figure: the thresholds the pay crosses and the category letter that sets the rate. This reference map pairs both for 2026/27. The band diagram fixes where NI starts and changes; the table decodes the letters. NI is a separate charge from income tax, levied on earnings under the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992^[5]; the authoritative rate source is gov.uk's rates and thresholds for employers 2026 to 2027^[1].

Four thresholds shape the bands. The Lower Earnings Limit (LEL), £6,708 a year, is the point from which a year counts toward contributory benefits and the State Pension, even though no employee NI is yet due. The Secondary Threshold (ST), £5,000, is where the employer starts paying secondary Class 1 NI at 15%. The Primary Threshold (PT), £12,570 (£1,048 a month), is where the employee starts paying primary Class 1 NI at 8%. The Upper Earnings Limit (UEL), £50,270 (£4,189 a month), is where the employee rate drops from 8% to 2%. The companion CSV below carries all four thresholds with annual, monthly, and weekly values.

Two bills sit behind one job, and only one shows on your payslip. The employee contribution (8% then 2%) is deducted from pay. The employer contribution (15% above the £5,000 ST) is paid on top of salary straight to HMRC and never appears in net pay; it matters to the worker only indirectly, since a higher employer NI bill is one reason pay rises and hiring slow. That employer side changed on 6 April 2025: the secondary rate rose from 13.8% to 15% and the ST fell from £9,100 to £5,000, while employee rates and thresholds were unchanged.

The category letter then picks which rate set applies. Most employees are A (standard rate). B is for married women or widows with a valid reduced-rate election^[4]; C is for employees over State Pension age, who pay no employee NI. Several letters carry an employer relief: H (apprentices under 25), M (under-21s), V (qualifying veterans), and Z (under-21s who defer) all let the employer pay 0% up to an upper threshold, which is why employers track them closely. F, I, S and L cover Freeport and Investment Zone employees, who have separate reliefs.

Every deduction is logged against your National Insurance number (NINO), the personal reference tying a lifetime of payslips, employers and benefits to one record^[6]. A NINO is nine characters, two letters then six digits then a final letter from A to D (for example QQ123456B); a number in any other shape is not valid, a quick check when verifying paperwork. Issued once per person under section 2 of the Social Security Administration Act 1992^[7] and never reused, the same number follows you for life, because the State Pension is built on a single record: 35 qualifying years earns the full new State Pension, and each year is logged against your NINO. You can start work before the number arrives, but giving it promptly stops the employer running an emergency code; a lost NINO is recovered, not re-applied for.

The practical rule: the letter sets the rate, not just a label, so a wrong letter means over- or under-paying NI. Employee rates are identical across A, H, M, V, and Z (8% then 2%); the difference those letters make is to the employer's bill, not the worker's. Reaching State Pension age should move a worker to C, after which employee NI stops. These are the 2026/27 figures: the Primary Threshold and Upper Earnings Limit are frozen to April 2031, while the Lower Earnings Limit and Secondary Threshold are reviewed each tax year, so always pin an NI calculation to the correct year and confirm current figures against gov.uk^[2].