Auto-Enrolment Calculator
Assess any worker against the 2026-27 thresholds: whether you must enrol them, their opt-in rights, and the minimum pension contributions due.
Age decides the category: 22 to State Pension age for automatic enrolment, 16 to 74 for opt-in and joining rights. We work out their State Pension age from the statutory timetable.
Assessment result
No assessment yet
Two quick steps: the worker's date of birth, then their pay. The category and minimum contributions appear here.
Auto-enrolment on autopilot
Moonworkers assesses every worker on every payrun, handles enrolment, opt-outs and re-enrolment, and pushes contributions to NEST, Smart Pension and The People's Pension automatically.
How auto-enrolment assessment works
The Pensions Regulator's assessment runs on two axes, age and earnings, checked every single pay period.
Step 1
Age test
22 to State Pension age puts a worker in scope for automatic enrolment. 16 to 74 gives opt-in or joining rights. Under 16 and 75-plus sit outside the framework entirely.
Step 2
Earnings test, per period
Earnings in the pay reference period are compared with the trigger (£833 monthly, £192 weekly in 2026-27) and the qualifying earnings band. The published per-period figures apply, not a simple division of the annual numbers.
Step 3
Contributions
Minimum 8% of qualifying earnings, at least 3% from the employer. How the worker's share is collected depends on the scheme: net pay, relief at source or salary sacrifice.
Deep dives: our guides to automatic enrolment, qualifying earnings and workplace pension contributions.
Auto-enrolment: frequently asked questions
Who must be automatically enrolled into a workplace pension?
Eligible jobholders: workers aged 22 to State Pension age who ordinarily work in the UK and earn more than the earnings trigger, £10,000 a year for 2026-27, assessed per pay period (£833 monthly, £192 weekly). The employer must enrol them and contribute at least 3% of qualifying earnings.
What are qualifying earnings?
The band of gross earnings between £6,240 and £50,270 a year for 2026-27. It includes salary, wages, overtime, commission, bonuses and statutory payments such as SSP and SMP. Minimum contributions are calculated on this band, not on full salary, unless the scheme certifies on another basis.
What is a non-eligible jobholder?
A worker aged 16 to 74 whose earnings sit above the lower level of qualifying earnings but at or below the trigger, or who earns above the trigger but is aged 16 to 21 or between State Pension age and 74. They are not enrolled automatically, but if they opt in the employer must enrol them and pay the employer minimum.
What is an entitled worker?
A worker aged 16 to 74 earning below the lower level of qualifying earnings (£6,240 a year, £520 a month for 2026-27). They can ask to join a pension scheme and the employer must arrange it, but no employer contribution is required.
What are the minimum auto-enrolment contributions in 2026-27?
A total of 8% of qualifying earnings, of which the employer must pay at least 3%. The worker makes up the balance, typically 5%, which under relief at source costs them 4% of qualifying earnings from net pay with the provider claiming the remaining 1% from HMRC as basic-rate tax relief.
How often must workers be assessed?
Every pay reference period, because earnings change. A worker also has to be reassessed when they turn 22, when they reach State Pension age, and at the employer’s three-yearly re-enrolment date if they previously opted out.
Can an employer postpone auto-enrolment?
Yes, by up to 3 months from the duties start date, a new starter’s first day, or the day a worker first meets the eligibility criteria. The employer must write to the worker about the postponement, and the worker keeps the right to opt in during it.
What is the difference between net pay, relief at source and salary sacrifice?
They are three ways of handling tax on the worker’s contribution. Net pay deducts before tax (Smart Pension’s default), relief at source deducts after tax with the provider reclaiming 20% (NEST’s method), and salary sacrifice converts the contribution into an employer payment, saving employee and employer National Insurance, capped at £2,000 a year of NI advantage from April 2029.
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