what is the latest top rate of income tax

Britain's income tax has changed over the years. Originally it taxed a person's income regardless of who was beneficially entitled to that income, but now tax is paid on income to which the taxpayer is beneficially entitled. Most companies were taken out of the income tax net in 1965 when corporation tax was introduced. These changes were consolidated by the Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1970. Also the schedules under which tax is levied have changed. Schedule B was abolished in 1988, Schedule C in 1996 and Schedule E in 2003. For income tax purposes, the remaining schedules were superseded by the Income Tax (Trading and Other Income) Act 2005, which also repealed Schedule F. For corporation tax purposes, the Schedular system was repealed and superseded by the Corporation Tax Acts of 2009 and 2010. The highest rate of income tax peaked in the Second World War at 99.25%. This was slightly reduced after the war and was around 97.5 percent (nineteen shillings and sixpence in the pound) through the 1950s and 60s.[9]

HM Revenue and Customs[10] has published online a comprehensive set of manuals about the UK tax system.[11]


Tax revenues as a percentage of GDP for the UK in comparison to the OECD and the EU 15
In 1971, the top rate of income tax on earned income was cut to 75%. A surcharge of 15% on investment income kept the overall top rate on that income at 90%. In 1974 the top tax rate on earned income was again raised, to 83%. With the investment income surcharge this raised the overall top rate on investment income to 98%, the highest permanent rate since the war. This applied to incomes over £20,000 (equivalent to £221,741 in 2021 terms),[3]. In 1974, as many as 750,000 people were liable to pay the top rate of income tax.[12] Margaret Thatcher, who favoured indirect taxation, reduced personal income tax rates during the 1980s.[13] In the first budget after her election victory in 1979, the top rate was reduced from 83% to 60% and the basic rate from 33% to 30%.[14] The basic rate was further cut in three subsequent budgets, to 29% in 1986 budget, 27% in 1987 and 25% in 1988.[15] The top rate of income tax was cut to 40% in the 1988 budget. The investment income surcharge was abolished in 1985.

Subsequent governments reduced the basic rate further, to the present level of 20% in 2007. Since 1976 (when it stood at 35%), the basic rate has been reduced by 15%, but this reduction has been largely offset by increases in national insurance contributions and value added tax.

In 2010 a new top rate of 50% was introduced on income over £150,000. Revenue to the Exchequer subsequently went down as top rate earners found methods to avoid taxation.[16] In the 2012 budget this rate was cut to 45% for 2013–14; this was followed by an increase in the tax paid by additional rate taxpayers from £38 billion to £46 billion. Chancellor George Osborne claimed that the lower, more competitive tax rate had caused the increase.[17]

In September 2022 the government announced that from April 2023 the top rate of tax would be reduced from 45% to 40% and the basic rate reduced from 20% to 19%.[18] The abolition of the 45% additional rate of tax was subsequently cancelled through measures set out in the 2022's Autumn statement.

Business rates were introduced in England and Wales in 1990 and are a modernised version of a system of rating that dates back to the Elizabethan Poor Law of 1601. As such, business rates retain many previous features from, and follow some case law of, older forms of rating. The Finance Act 2004 introduced an income tax regime known as "pre-owned asset tax" which aims to reduce the use of common methods of inheritance tax avoidance.[19]

45% above 150,000 as of Aug 2022