Budget 2026: how Planiva has updated its planners to help you plan ahead

New Tax and CGT plans default to the current UK tax year. Saved plans retain their selected year, so reopening an earlier scenario does not silently move it forward.

Both planners support 2027/28 modelling within their supported scope. Where a calculation uses announced rules that still require legislation, Planiva identifies that status so you can distinguish a planning assumption from an enacted rule.

From 6 April 2027, the government plans separate income-tax rates of 24%, 44% and 49% for savings income, and the same rates for property income in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Tax Planner models these categories separately from employment and pension income, while preserving the relevant allowances and band interactions.

Scottish 2027/28 income-tax and property-rate decisions have not yet been confirmed. Planiva therefore carries forward the current Scottish schedule as a disclosed planning assumption rather than presenting it as confirmed future law.

Read the Budget 2026 rates and allowances and the Budget 2026 tax legislation overview.

The Tax Planner has separate inputs for taxable State Pension and private pension income. For 2027/28 it models the announced Pension Tax Allowance as a capped reduction in Income Tax, not as a larger Personal Allowance. State Pension remains taxable income.

The policy is based on State Pension age and total qualifying income. For this initial Planiva model, entering a State Pension amount means Planiva assumes the State Pension-age condition is met. It does not yet model people who qualify by age but receive no State Pension. Results and reports make that limitation visible.

The allowance is announced from April 2027 and may change through legislation. HMRC's Pension Tax Allowance explainer gives the published 2027/28 thresholds and examples.

You can enter one sole-trader activity alongside PAYE employment and other supported income. Choose either the Trading Allowance or allowable expenses; both cannot be deducted from the same receipts. The resulting taxable profit joins the wider Income Tax estimate.

Planiva uses the selected year's allowance: £1,000 through 2026/27 and the announced £3,000 from 2027/28. The separate £3,000 reporting threshold announced for April 2027 concerns gross receipts. It is not a general exemption from reporting or Income Tax, and eligibility for either allowance remains your responsibility to check.

This is a basic Income Tax feature. It excludes self-employed National Insurance, loss relief, partnerships and multiple businesses. Those limits are shown in the planner's results and reports.

New Retirement Planner plans created from 31 March 2027 use the updated full new State Pension amount of £13,036.40 as their editable starting assumption. Your entitlement may differ, so check your State Pension forecast and use the figure that suits your circumstances.

The Estate Planner now calculates the existing residence nil-rate-band taper. The allowance is reduced by £1 for every £2 that the estate used for the taper exceeds £2 million. This is an existing rule, not a new Budget 2026 measure.

For deaths on or after 6 April 2027, most unused pension funds and pension death benefits enter the estate for Inheritance Tax, with exceptions. In Planiva, decide whether to tick the existing pension-inclusion checkbox for each pension based on the treatment you believe applies. An included pension can also increase the estate used for the residence allowance taper. The estimate does not calculate pension exceptions, beneficiary Income Tax or estate-administration and payment mechanics.

Read Planiva's related guide: Pensions and inheritance tax from 2027. The underlying pension-IHT change is set out in HMRC's technical note.

These updates give you more scope to explore how changing rules may affect your finances. Check the selected tax year, review your income and pension figures, and read the assumptions shown with each result.

Planiva provides educational financial planning and scenario modelling. It does not provide regulated financial advice or personalised tax or legal advice.