Employers pay 15% National Insurance on each employee's pay above £5,000 a year. The Employment Allowance takes up to £10,500 off the bill for an eligible business.
Employer National Insurance is 15% of each employee's earnings above the secondary threshold of £5,000 a year, or £96 a week. The Employment Allowance is £10,500 for 2026/27, and since April 2025 employers with more than £100,000 of National Insurance can claim it.
A care worker on 37.5 hours a week at £12.71 earns £24,784.50 a year. Employer National Insurance on that pay is £2,967.68, so the allowance covers the National Insurance on about three and a half full-time carers.
GOV.UK says a business can claim if it does less than half its work in the public sector, giving local councils and NHS services as examples. Charities can claim either way. Connected companies get one allowance between them, claimed against one payroll.
HMRC's further guidance says work is of a public nature where more than 50% of it is done "in or for the public sector". Its examples include NHS services and "providing a meals on wheels service for a local council", and the share can be measured by staff, time or turnover. It names no care home or home care agency. If most of your income comes from council or NHS contracts, talk to us before you claim.
Section 4 of the same guidance says early years childcare providers can claim if they are private businesses or charities.
At £13.21 an hour from 1 April 2027, the same full-time worker earns £25,759.50 and carries £3,113.93 of employer National Insurance, £146.25 more than in 2026/27.
We run your payroll, check Employment Allowance eligibility across connected companies, and include National Insurance in the cost per hour in our care staffing cost calculator.
No. Where companies are connected, only one company in the group can claim.
HMRC's guidance says early years childcare providers can claim if they are private businesses or charities.
The cost of the April 2027 rise for each full-time care worker.
Who can still be sponsored, and the Home Office fees for each worker.
Accrual at 12.07% and rolled-up holiday pay for bank and zero-hours carers.
We look at your last accounts, your payroll hours and your fee rates, and tell you what we would change.