National Insurance for 2026/27 is now locked in by Treasury regulations made on 3 March and effective from 6 April 2026. The instrument lifts the Lower Earnings Limit (LEL), raises Class 2 and Class 3 weekly rates, and extends the employers’ zero‑rate for hiring qualifying armed forces veterans. It also confirms the standard Treasury grant facility to the National Insurance Fund for 2026/27. (legislation.gov.uk)

For payroll teams, most Class 1 thresholds remain at last year’s levels. The one that moves is the LEL, which rises to £129 per week, £559 per month, or £6,708 a year from 6 April 2026. That figure matters because it is the gateway at which employees start to build a National Insurance record even if they do not actually pay NICs. (gov.uk)

This LEL change nudges the floor for credits up by £4 a week. A retail assistant paid £128 a week in 2025/26 would have banked NI credits; on the same hours and rate in 2026/27 they would not. Managers should sense‑check rotas and pay frequencies so regular earnings clear £129 a week (or £559 a month) to protect staff entitlement to the State Pension and other contributory benefits. (gov.uk)

Micro‑company directors who traditionally set salary at the LEL to secure a qualifying year need to retune those figures too. A £6,500 annual salary no longer suffices in 2026/27; the new benchmark is £6,708. Update payroll templates before the first April run to avoid an avoidable gap on Companies House owners’ NI records. (gov.uk)

For the self‑employed, the Small Profits Threshold moves from £6,845 to £7,105, and the Class 2 rate rises from £3.50 to £3.65 a week. In practical terms, profits at or above the new threshold will continue to be treated as having paid Class 2 for benefit purposes, while those below can opt to pay voluntarily at the new weekly rate. (legislation.gov.uk)

A quick sense‑check helps. Take a mobile hairdresser with £6,800 profits in 2026/27: they sit below the Small Profits Threshold, so to maintain their State Pension record they can choose to pay voluntary Class 2 at £3.65 a week, about £189.80 for the year. The alternative Class 3 route would cost £18.40 a week, around £956.80-useful only if Class 2 is not available. (legislation.gov.uk)

Voluntary Class 3 itself increases to £18.40 a week. That rate applies where someone does not qualify to pay Class 2 but wants to top up missing years-common for people between contracts or with no self‑employed profits in the year. The message is simple: check eligibility for the lower Class 2 first, then consider Class 3 as a fallback. (legislation.gov.uk)

The employers’ zero‑rate for hiring qualifying veterans is extended for two further tax years, covering 2026/27 and 2027/28. Employers pay 0% secondary Class 1 NICs on a qualifying veteran’s earnings up to the veterans’ upper secondary threshold-currently aligned with £50,270-for the first 12 months of that civilian employment. HMRC confirmed the extension and threshold position in its February Employer Bulletin and current rates guidance. (gov.uk)

What does that look like on a payslip? A café hiring a veteran on £32,000 from 10 May 2026 saves roughly £4,050 over the first year-15% employer NICs that would otherwise have been due on earnings above the £5,000 secondary threshold and below £50,270 are reduced to 0%. Category letter V should be used in payroll, and the 12‑month clock runs from the veteran’s first day in their first civilian job. (gov.uk)

Most other Class 1 thresholds and the 15% employer rate are unchanged for 2026/27, limiting budget shock for SMEs. The freeze keeps the primary threshold, secondary threshold, upper earnings limit and specialist upper secondary thresholds steady, while the LEL uplift does the heavy lifting for record‑building. The practical to‑do remains routine: update software, re‑check starter forms, and brief line managers on the revised entry point for NI credits. (gov.uk)

Finally, the regulations authorise up to a 5% Treasury grant to the National Insurance Fund for 2026/27 if required. The Government Actuary’s January report notes the LEL and Small Profits Threshold changes are not expected to move Fund income this year, and overall balances are projected to stay above the one‑sixth recommended minimum. This is system plumbing rather than something employers or sole traders need to act on. (legislation.gov.uk)