From 6 April 2024, non-savings, non-dividend (NSND) income tax will be subject to six bands compared to three bands in the rest of the UK. The Scottish Parliament has power to set the rates and bands of NSND income tax. It has no power over personal allowance, savings and dividends income tax, or income tax reliefs and exemptions, which continue to be set by the UK government.
Scottish income tax is charged to Scottish taxpayers who are identified by an S-code in their tax return and assessed on the basis of their main place of residency, not their place of work. For instance, a taxpayer who lives in Berwick-upon-Tweed but works in Edinburgh pays rest-of-UK (rUK) income tax, not Scottish.
Table 1 shows the income tax rules for Scotland and rUK in 2024-25.
Tax band |
Scottish rate |
Scottish band |
rUK rate |
rUK band |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Personal Allowance* |
0% |
Up to £12,570 |
0% |
Up to £12,570 |
Starter |
19% |
£12,571 to £14,876 |
— |
— |
Basic |
20% |
£14,877 to £26,561 |
20% |
£12,571 to £50,270 |
Intermediate |
21% |
£26,562 to £43,662 |
— |
— |
Higher |
42% |
£43,663 to £75,000 |
40% |
£50,271 to £125,140 |
Advanced |
45% |
£75,001 to £125,140 |
— |
— |
Top/additional** |
48% |
Over £125,140 |
45% |
Over £125,140 |
* The Personal Allowance goes down by £1 for every £2 of income above £100,000. You do not get a Personal Allowance on taxable income over £125,140.
** The Scottish top rate is called “additional rate” in rUK.
Calculate your income tax
You can calculate your 2024-25 income tax liability below.
Tax band |
Scotland |
rUK |
Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
Starter |
— |
— |
|
Basic |
— |
||
Intermediate |
— |
— |
|
Higher |
— |
||
Advanced |
— |
— |
|
Top/additional |
— |
||
Total income tax |
Maike Waldmann, SPICe statistician