Use every allowance

Each year you get a set of tax-free allowances. Most can’t be carried forward, so the ones you don’t use are gone.

Figures checked 15 Oct 2026 for the 2026/27 tax year (6 April 2026 to 5 April 2027), for England, Wales and Northern Ireland; Scotland has its own income tax bands. Tax rules change, usually at each Budget. Next review: after the next Budget, and by 6 April 2027.

Allowance	2026/27	What it means
ISA	£20,000 a year	Growth and income free of tax for life. From April 2027, at most £12,000 of it in cash for under-65s.
Capital gains tax	£3,000 of gains a year	Then 18% (basic rate) or 24% (higher rate) on shares held outside an ISA or pension.
Dividend allowance	£500 a year	Then 10.75% (basic), 35.75% (higher) or 39.35% (additional) from April 2026.
Personal savings allowance	£1,000 (basic) / £500 (higher)	Interest above it is taxed; additional-rate taxpayers have none.
Marriage allowance	Up to £252 a year	A non-taxpayer can transfer £1,260 of their allowance to a basic-rate spouse or civil partner; backdate up to four years.
Pension annual allowance	£60,000 a year	Tax relief on the way in; see pensions and salary sacrifice.

Ways to use them

Fill the ISA first for investments you might want before retirement. Shares held there never need to appear on a tax return.
“Bed and ISA”: if you hold shares or funds outside an ISA, many platforms will sell them and buy them back inside your ISA in one go. Gains up to £3,000 a year are tax-free, and future growth is sheltered.
Couples: transfers between spouses and civil partners are free of capital gains tax, so investments can be held by whoever pays less tax on them, and each of you has your own allowances.
Child Benefit: if either parent’s adjusted net income is over £60,000, the High Income Child Benefit Charge claws back 1% for every £200, all of it at £80,000. Pension contributions reduce adjusted net income here too.

Sources: GOV.UK: capital gains tax allowances; tax on dividends; marriage allowance; High Income Child Benefit Charge.

General information, not tax or financial advice: how the rules apply depends on your circumstances. For free, impartial guidance try MoneyHelper; for complicated cases, a regulated financial adviser or a chartered tax adviser. All tax pages.