What Is a Pension Input Period?
A pension input period (PIP) is the time frame over which your pension savings are measured to determine whether you have exceeded the pension annual allowance. Since 6 April 2016, all pension input periods are aligned with the tax year, running from 6 April to 5 April the following year.
Before April 2016, pension schemes could set their own input periods, which sometimes created confusion when different schemes had different measurement dates. The alignment to the tax year simplified this process considerably. Now, every pension scheme measures your contributions over the same 12-month window.
Your pension input amount is the total value of pension savings made during the pension input period. If this amount exceeds the annual allowance of £60,000 for 2026/27 (after accounting for any carry forward), you will face a tax charge.
How Pension Inputs Work in Defined Contribution Schemes
For defined contribution (DC) pensions – including workplace auto-enrolment schemes, SIPPs, and personal pensions – calculating your pension input is relatively simple. It is the total of all contributions paid into the scheme during the tax year.
This includes:
- Your personal contributions – grossed up for basic-rate tax relief. If you pay £8,000, your scheme claims £2,000 in tax relief, making the gross contribution £10,000
- Employer contributions – counted at face value, with no grossing up required
- Salary sacrifice contributions – treated as employer contributions for tax purposes
- Third-party contributions – for example, a spouse contributing to your pension
Example: DC Pension Input Calculation
Sarah earns £65,000 and contributes 8% of her salary to her workplace pension through salary sacrifice. Her employer contributes 5%. Her pension input for the year is:
| Contribution Source | Calculation | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Sarah’s salary sacrifice (treated as employer) | 8% × £65,000 | £5,200 |
| Employer contribution | 5% × £65,000 | £3,250 |
| Additional personal SIPP contribution (gross) | £4,000 net × 100/80 | £5,000 |
| Total pension input | £13,450 | |
Sarah’s total pension input of £13,450 is well within the £60,000 annual allowance, so there is no tax charge.
How Pension Inputs Work in Defined Benefit Schemes
Defined benefit (DB) pension inputs are calculated very differently. Instead of measuring actual contributions paid in, HMRC measures the increase in the capital value of your accrued benefits over the pension input period. The formula uses a factor of 16:
Pension Input = [(closing pension × 16) + closing lump sum] − [(opening pension × CPI adjustment × 16) + (opening lump sum × CPI adjustment)]
The CPI adjustment ensures that only real growth in your benefits counts – inflation-linked increases are stripped out. This is important because many DB schemes automatically increase benefits in line with inflation, and without this adjustment, the inflation increase alone could consume a significant portion of the annual allowance.
Why Pay Rises Can Be Dangerous in DB Schemes
In a DB scheme, your pension is linked to your salary. A large pay rise increases the pension you will receive in retirement, which in turn increases the capital value of your benefits. This spike in pension input can push you over the annual allowance even though your contribution rate has not changed.
Multiple Pension Schemes and Input Periods
If you contribute to more than one pension scheme, each scheme measures its own pension input over the tax year. However, the annual allowance applies to the total of all your pension inputs across all schemes. You cannot have a separate £60,000 allowance for each scheme.
This is particularly relevant if you have:
- A workplace pension and a separate SIPP
- Multiple workplace pensions from different employers
- Both a DB and a DC scheme
Your pension provider or scheme administrator should be able to tell you your pension input amount for their scheme. You then need to add up the inputs from all schemes to check against the annual allowance.
The 2015/16 Transitional Rules
When pension input periods were realigned to the tax year in April 2016, transitional rules applied for the 2015/16 tax year. This tax year was split into two mini periods:
- Pre-alignment period: From the start of your existing PIP to 8 July 2015, with an annual allowance of £80,000
- Post-alignment period: From 9 July 2015 to 5 April 2016, with an annual allowance of zero (but with a special allowance of up to £40,000 available from unused pre-alignment allowance)
These transitional rules are now historic, but they can still be relevant if you are calculating carry forward from those years or if HMRC queries your tax return from that period.
Practical Steps: Managing Your Pension Input Period
- Request your pension input amount – Ask each of your pension providers for your pension input amount for the current tax year. DB schemes are required to provide this information.
- Add up all inputs – Combine the pension input amounts from all your schemes to get your total.
- Check carry forward – If your total is close to or exceeds £60,000, check whether you have unused allowance from the previous three years that you can carry forward.
- Plan contributions carefully – If you are at risk of exceeding the allowance, consider spreading contributions across tax years or reducing additional voluntary contributions.
- Get professional advice – If you are in a DB scheme with a significant pay increase, or if you are near the tapered annual allowance threshold, professional advice is strongly recommended.
When Does a Pension Input Period End?
A pension input period normally ends on 5 April each year. However, it can also end earlier if certain trigger events occur:
- You stop being a member of the scheme
- The scheme ceases to be a registered pension scheme
- You reach age 75 (a new PIP begins the following day)
When a PIP ends early, a new one begins immediately. The annual allowance is not split proportionally – the full £60,000 allowance applies to the tax year regardless of how many separate PIPs fall within it.