Country file

What it costs an employer to hire in United Kingdom

This figure is the statutory employer cost for the UK only; it does not include an employer of record's own service fee, which providers price separately. Which countries a given provider actually covers is confirmed provider by provider, not implied by its appearing on this page.

Every contribution line shows the source used and the date checked. We prefer primary statutory sources. When a statutory page could not be reliably retrieved, we label the line as secondary and name the national payroll reference used. The figures are for 2026.

Model assumptions: 2026–27 ordinary category A NI, annualized regular pay: 15% above GBP 5,000. The model includes a 3% employer pension on qualifying earnings GBP 6,240–50,270 only for an eligible enrolled employee. Employment Allowance, category reliefs and actual pay-period rounding are not applied. Apprenticeship Levy is excluded: liability and allocation depend on the legal employer, its GBP 15,000 annual allowance and connected employers’ pay bill. An EOR may separately quote an allocation; it is not a universal 0.5% charge on every hire.

A mid salary of £55,000

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Published EOR fee on top of this employer cost

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The whole budget for one hire in the United Kingdom, the fee and this employer cost side by side: EOR fee plus employer cost in the United Kingdom.

A senior salary of £110,000

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Where the percentage changes

The formula

Each contribution uses its own documented earnings base and limits. The generic annual percentage formula is not a universal payroll rule. Brazil's worked assumptions include a thirteenth salary and a separate one-third vacation premium, with ordinary contributions and FGTS on covered remuneration. The total-gross option includes both salary additions. The Philippines model calculates twelve monthly capped contributions and fixed EC only for its supported constant high-pay scenario. Lower or irregular pay requires monthly payroll; no unsupported estimate is shown.

Each ceiling above applies only to its own line, which is why the employer percentage for United Kingdom is not the same at both salaries. Employer contribution ceilings, country by country lists where every ceiling on this site sits.

Time off, extra pay and leaving

5.6 weeks, which is 28 days on a five-day week. The employer may count the 8 bank holidays inside that 28, so bank holidays are not necessarily extra paid days (gov.uk/holiday-entitlement-rights).

No statutory 13th month.

No general statutory severance. Statutory redundancy pay applies on redundancy only: half a week, one week or one and a half weeks' pay per year of service by age band, on a weekly pay capped at 751 pounds from 6 April 2026, 20 years maximum, 22,530 pounds maximum.

What the percentage hides

Employer National Insurance has no upper earnings limit. The 15% continues on everything above the 5,000 pound secondary threshold, so the employer burden does not taper as pay rises.

Employment Allowance can reduce an eligible small employer's annual NI bill by up to 10,500 pounds. It is not modeled in the percentages here.

Auto-enrolment qualifying earnings run from 6,240 to 50,270 pounds and are unchanged for 2026/27 (thepensionsregulator.gov.uk).

Apprenticeship Levy is excluded from modeled totals. Confirm any EOR allocation in the quote; the employer-level annual allowance is GBP 15,000 and connected employers share it. Source: HMRC rates and thresholds (read October 13, 2026).

Items requiring payroll or quote confirmation, not established by any figure above: the full statutory notice escalation schedule beyond one week per year, capped at 12 weeks.

Using an employer of record in the United Kingdom

The modeled total includes salary payments and employer contributions. An employer of record adds its own fee on top, and that fee is a flat monthly amount rather than a percentage, so it weighs far more on a junior salary than a senior one. The published prices are here, and the calculator will add one to the figures on this page.