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Carry forward and save more in your pension

The carry forward rules enable you to use any unused annual allowance from the last three tax years.

Each tax year, there is a maximum amount you can save into your pensions and benefit from tax relief. This is called the annual allowance and for most people the limit is currently set at £60,000.

If you are a higher earner, your annual allowance might be reduced. This is known as the Tapered Annual Allowance.

However, you may be able to contribute more than the annual allowance in one tax year if you didn’t use all of your allowance in any of the previous three tax years. This is known as carry forward. Remember, you can't usually access the money invested in your pension until you are 55, this is due to change to 57 in 2028.

Please note, if you have triggered the money purchase annual allowance, carry forward cannot be used to make higher contributions than the money purchase annual allowance amount, currently £10,000, to any money purchase pensions you own. Find out more about the money purchase annual allowance.

Please note tax treatment depends on individual circumstances and tax and pension rules may change in the future.

Carry forward guide thumbnail

Carry forward guide

Read our carry forward guide to find out if you might be able to contribute more than the annual allowance into your pension this tax year.

Download the carry forward guide