UK raises national minimum wage to £12.71 an hour for over-21s
Payroll teams must update pay to new legal minimums from 1 April 2026
Change
UK raised the national minimum wage, effective 1 April 2026, setting £12.71 an hour for workers aged 21 and over while increasing rates to £10.85 for 18–20-year-olds and £8.00 for under-18s and apprentices.
Why it matters
Employers are legally required to operate the higher statutory minimum pay rates for the specified age bands from 1 April 2026. Several employers have warned they will need to raise consumer prices, reduce staffing levels, or close sites to remain financially sustainable under the higher wage costs.
Implications
- — Payroll teams at UK employers must update payroll systems and apply the new statutory minimum rates from 1 April 2026 — failure to implement timely pay changes risks enforcement fines and back-pay liabilities.
- — HR and compliance teams at UK employers must audit contracts, pay bands and pay-roll rules for 18–20-year-olds, under-18s and apprentices immediately — failure to correct underpayments exposes firms to wage claims and regulatory enforcement.
Unlock the full brief.
- Implications: What this forces you to change — operations, exposure, or compliance.
- Who is affected: Which roles, contracts, and obligations are exposed.
- What to watch: Binding deadlines and enforcement dates.
- Real-time alerts: Delivered the moment a change is published.
- Ask AI: Ask what this means for your specific role.
Source
View on BBC