Redundancy Calculator — UK Statutory Redundancy Pay Estimate
If your job is at risk, knowing the legal minimum helps. This estimator follows the official UK formula — weeks of pay by age band, the statutory cap of £751 a week in force from 6 April 2026, and the 20-year maximum — per GOV.UK.
Your service
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Your statutory estimate
- Each year of service earns weeks by age band: 0.5 weeks under 22, 1 week at 22–40, and 1.5 weeks at 41+ — counted backwards from the age you leave, with at most 20 years counting.
- A week’s pay is capped at £751 (from 6 April 2026), so the most anyone can receive is 30 weeks × £751 = £22,530.
- The default case — age 45, 12 years of service, £600 a week — earns 14.5 weeks of pay and comes to £8,700.00.
If your job is at risk, knowing the legal minimum helps. This estimator follows the official UK formula — weeks of pay by age band, the statutory cap of £751 a week in force from 6 April 2026, and the 20-year maximum — per GOV.UK.
Weeks earned, band by band
Each year of service earns weeks according to the age band you were in during that year. The older bands earn more — which is why two people with the same service can get different amounts.
Keep exploring
Three companion tools for pay and planning.
How it works
Three steps, exactly as the statutory rules set them out.
Count the service
Complete years with your employer, counted backwards from the age you leave — and capped at 20 years, however long you have worked there.
Band each year by age
Each year earns half a week’s pay if you were under 22 in it, one week if you were 22 to 40, and one and a half weeks if you were 41 or over.
Multiply by a week’s pay
Add up the weeks and multiply by your weekly pay — itself capped at £751 for redundancies on or after 6 April 2026, per GOV.UK.
The math behind statutory redundancy pay
The statutory formula — set out on GOV.UK’s “Redundancy: your rights” pages — works backwards from the day your employment ends. Each complete year of service is matched to the age you were during it and earns a set number of weeks: 0.5 weeks for years under 22, 1 week for years aged 22 to 40, and 1.5 weeks for years aged 41 or more. At most 20 years of service count. A “week’s pay” is your average weekly earnings over the 12 weeks before you received notice, and for redundancies on or after 6 April 2026 it is capped at £751 — which also sets the maximum possible statutory payment at 30 weeks × £751 = £22,530. You normally need at least 2 years’ service to qualify in England, Scotland and Wales.
Worked examples:
| Case | Weeks calculation | Pay |
|---|---|---|
| Age 45 · 12 years · £600/week | 5 yrs × 1.5 (ages 41–45) + 7 yrs × 1.0 (ages 34–40) = 14.5 weeks | £8,700.00 |
| Age 30 · 5 years · £500/week | 5 yrs × 1.0 = 5 weeks | £2,500.00 |
| Age 20 · 3 years · £400/week | 3 yrs × 0.5 = 1.5 weeks | £600.00 |
The cap at work: someone leaving at 50 with 25 years of service and £900 a week has only 20 years counted — 10 at the 1.5 rate and 10 at the 1.0 rate, 25 weeks — and the pay is cut to the £751 cap, giving 25 × £751 = £18,775.00 rather than £22,500.00.
Go deeper
The cap explained — and the payments this estimate does not include.
The cap is the single biggest reason actual redundancy pay often differs from a quick salary-based guess:
- The figure: for redundancies on or after 6 April 2026, a week’s pay is capped at £751 (GOV.UK, “Redundancy: your rights”). Redundancies before that date use a lower cap.
- The ceiling it creates: the most anyone can receive is 20 years × 1.5 weeks × £751 = £22,530 — the cap bites hardest on long-serving, higher-paid, older employees, who hit all three limits at once.
- Below the cap, your real pay counts: earn £600 a week and the full £600 is used; the cap only trims the excess above £751.
- Contracts can beat the statute: many employers offer enhanced redundancy terms with no cap at all. This calculator shows the statutory floor, not your employer’s scheme — check your contract and any collective agreement.
Statutory redundancy pay is only one line of a final payslip:
- Notice pay: you are entitled to your contractual notice or the statutory minimum notice, whichever is longer — worked, paid in lieu, or a mix. Notice pay is taxed as earnings.
- Holiday pay: accrued but untaken holiday up to your leaving date must be paid.
- The £30,000 tax-free allowance: redundancy pay plus other termination payments (such as an ex-gratia payment) are normally tax-free up to a combined £30,000. Notice pay does not count towards that allowance — it is taxed separately as earnings.
- Deadlines: you normally have just under 6 months from the end of your employment to claim statutory redundancy pay — do not let the date drift, and keep your redundancy letter and payslips.
Which year’s cap applies to your redundancy?
The weekly pay cap changes each April. The cap that decides your payment is the one in force on the date your redundancy takes effect.
| Redundancy takes effect | Weekly pay cap | Maximum statutory pay |
|---|---|---|
| 6 April 2025 to 5 April 2026 | £719 | £21,570 |
| On or after 6 April 2026 | £751 | £22,530 |
Caps for England, Scotland and Wales, per GOV.UK. Northern Ireland caps differ from these figures, so use the GOV.UK redundancy pay calculator for a Northern Ireland leaving date. The date rule is worth more than it looks: a reader with 14.5 weeks earned, on £900 a week, is capped in both years, because £900 exceeds both caps. At the £719 cap the payment is 14.5 × £719 = £10,425.50; at the £751 cap it is 14.5 × £751 = £10,889.50, a difference of £464 for the same service, the same age bands, and the same pay, decided only by the leaving date. A reader earning £600 a week, below both caps, is unaffected: the full £600 is used in either year. If your leaving date sits near an April boundary, confirm the date in your redundancy letter before accepting a figure worked out under the wrong year’s cap, and keep the written statement of how the payment was worked out with your payslips.
Reading the whole final payment: statutory pay, notice, holiday pay, and tax
The statutory estimate is one line. The final payment has several, and each line is taxed in its own way.
Worked final payment, using round figures so each line can be followed. A reader leaving at 45 after 12 years on £600 a week earns 14.5 weeks of statutory pay: £8,700.00. The same reader is owed 12 weeks’ notice at £600 a week, £7,200, paid in lieu, and 5 days of accrued holiday at £120 a day, £600. The cash total is £16,500. The tax split is what matters: the £8,700 of statutory pay counts towards the combined £30,000 tax-free allowance for termination payments, together with any enhanced or ex-gratia payment, while the £7,200 of notice pay and the £600 of holiday pay are taxed as earnings, with National Insurance, and do not use the allowance. If the same reader also received a £15,000 ex-gratia payment, the qualifying total would be £8,700 + £15,000 = £23,700, still within the allowance; with a larger ex-gratia sum the total could cross £30,000, and only the excess would be taxed as income.
Three reading rules follow. First, never judge a final payment by its single total: ask for the split between statutory pay, any enhanced or ex-gratia element, notice pay, and holiday pay. Second, never assume the cap applies to every line: the £751 cap trims the weekly pay used for the statutory calculation only, while notice pay uses your normal weekly rate, uncapped. Third, never assume a generous headline figure is all tax-free: the £30,000 allowance applies once, to the qualifying payments combined, and notice and holiday pay sit outside it. A payslip that shows only one total, with one tax deduction, is not enough to verify any of this; ask for the breakdown, in writing, before the 6-month claim window and any settlement deadline pass.
Frequently asked questions
Quick answers about UK statutory redundancy pay.
How is statutory redundancy pay calculated?
Count your complete years of service backwards from your leaving date, up to a maximum of 20 years. Each year earns half a week’s pay if you were under 22 in it, one week’s pay if you were 22 to 40, and one and a half weeks’ pay if you were 41 or over. Total the weeks and multiply by your weekly pay, which is capped at £751 for redundancies on or after 6 April 2026.
How much redundancy pay do I get for 12 years of service?
It depends on your age and pay, because the years are banded by age. Leaving at 45 after 12 years on £600 a week: 5 years fall in the 41+ band (5 × 1.5 = 7.5 weeks) and 7 in the 22–40 band (7 × 1.0 = 7 weeks), so 14.5 weeks × £600 = £8,700.00. The same 12 years worked entirely between 22 and 40 would earn just 12 weeks.
What is the maximum statutory redundancy pay?
£22,530. That is the longest possible service counted (20 years), all at the top rate (1.5 weeks per year, so 30 weeks), multiplied by the weekly pay cap of £751 in force for redundancies on or after 6 April 2026. Your employer may pay more under your contract, but the statute never requires more than this.
Do I qualify for statutory redundancy pay?
In England, Scotland and Wales you normally qualify if you are an employee with at least 2 years’ continuous service and you are genuinely made redundant — the role itself disappearing, not dismissal for misconduct. Some groups are excluded, including most members of the armed forces and police, and share fishermen. With under 2 years’ service the statutory entitlement is £0, though your contract may still offer something.
Is redundancy pay taxed?
Statutory redundancy pay is tax-free, and together with other termination payments such as an ex-gratia sum it counts towards a combined £30,000 tax-free allowance; anything above that is taxed as income. Pay in lieu of notice is different — it is taxed as earnings in the usual way and does not use the £30,000 allowance.
What counts as a week’s pay for redundancy?
Your average weekly pay over the 12 weeks before the day you received your redundancy notice. If your hours or earnings vary, the 12 weeks are averaged; if you were paid less than usual in that window for certain reasons the rules adjust the figure. Whatever the average, the amount used is capped at £751 for redundancies on or after 6 April 2026.
Is severance pay the same as redundancy pay?
No. Statutory redundancy pay is the legal minimum owed to qualifying employees who are made redundant, calculated by the age-band formula with a weekly pay cap. Severance pay is the broader word for a payment on leaving, usually an enhanced, contractual, or ex-gratia payment on top of the statutory figure. There is no separate statutory severance formula in the UK. The two elements are calculated differently but share one combined 30,000 pound tax-free allowance.
What if my employer offers more than the statutory minimum?
Many employers do, under a contract, staff handbook, or collective agreement, using uncapped pay, a higher multiplier, or a flat sum. The statutory figure is the floor the employer cannot go below, not a prediction of the offer. Check whether the enhanced figure includes the statutory payment or is paid in addition to it, because the wording decides the total. Statutory and enhanced payments together count towards the combined 30,000 pound tax-free allowance, while notice pay and holiday pay are taxed as earnings.
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Statutory pay, notice, and tax, and how severance pay differs.
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Disclaimer
This calculator is for information only and is not legal or financial advice. It estimates the statutory minimum redundancy pay for England, Scotland and Wales using the rules published on GOV.UK, including the £751 weekly pay cap in force from 6 April 2026. It does not cover contractual or enhanced redundancy schemes, Northern Ireland, or disputed service dates. For your exact entitlement, check GOV.UK, ACAS or an employment adviser.