Income tax receipts in the UK 2000-2024

In 2023/24, income tax receipts in the United Kingdom amounted to 273.3 billion British pounds, compared with 248.4 billion in the previous year. Although the value of income tax receipts has grown quite consistently throughout this period, there is a sharp increase observable from 2021/22 onwards. The period of high inflation from 2021 onwards led to faster wage growth, which pushed many UK workers into higher tax bands, resulting in the increased income tax revenue. 

Income tax brackets

The amount which workers in the United Kingdom pay in income tax is determined by how much they earn, placing them in different income tax bands. All workers in the United Kingdom are entitled to earn a personal allowance of 12,750 pounds before they are charged income tax. The Basic rate of 20 percent applies to income between 12,750 and 37,700, with a higher rate of 40 percent charged on incomes between 37,701 and 125,140 pounds. The highest tax band stands at 45 percent, for earnings over 125,140 pounds.

Main UK taxes

Income tax is the largest source of UK government revenue, accounting for 9.8 percent of gross domestic product in 2022/23. Value Added Tax was the next largest source of UK government revenue, followed by National Insurance, and Corporation Tax. Value Added Tax or VAT is the largest indirect tax in the UK, and is raised via a 20 percent levy on most goods and services sold in the UK. National Insurance Contributions form an additional direct tax on earnings in the UK, while Corporation Tax taxes the profits of companies resident in the UK.