SINGLES
Single, no children. Unemployed
Base income: £3,801
2015-16 Jobseeker’s allowance rose to £73.10 (£57.90 if aged 16-24) in April, an increase of 70p a week or £36.40 a year compared with 2014-15. Housing benefit eligibility will depend on his property size and, if he rents, where he lives.
2016-17 His benefits are frozen, meaning his overall income neither increases nor decreases.
Single person, 21, no children. Works 30 hours a week, on minimum wage. Flat-shares in north London, rent £550pcm
Base income: £9,360
2015-16 After tax and national insurance contributions her annual take home pay is £9,204. She is too young to qualify for tax credits but receives £1,231 in housing benefit a year.
2016-17 She is better off by £88.60. She doesn’t pay tax so won’t benefit from the increased thresholds. As she is under 25 her income doesn’t increase to the new national living wage. She gets a 20p rise in the minimum wage so her new take-home pay is £9,457. Her benefits are frozen but her housing benefit reduces to £1,066.
Single mother, two children, rent £800pcm in Ipswich, on housing benefit and tax credits
Base income: £16,000
2015-16 The family have a net earned income of £13,967 which is topped up with £6,968 in working and child tax credits and £1,213 of housing benefit. She also receives £1,789 in child benefit for a total household income of £23,937.
2016-17 The increased tax allowance means her income rises to £14,047. However, her working tax credit is cut entirely and combined child tax credit and housing benefit is reduced to £7,463. The changes mean that overall she is worse off by £639.
A single person aged 24 with no children. He previously worked but is now receiving sickness benefits. He rents a housing association flat in Manchester for £70 per week
Base income: £8,952
2015-16 He receives £5,312 in employment and support allowance and housing benefit of £3,640. This gives a total income of £8,952.
2016-17 The 1% reduction in social housing rents means he now has to pay rent of £69.30. Housing benefit reduces to cover this amount. Other benefits are frozen meaning that he is no better or worse off.
Single mother, one child. Receives child benefit
Base income: £35,000
2015-16 She has take-home pay of £26,887 after tax and national insurance contributions are deducted. She also -receives £1,076 in child benefit and £2,766 in tax credits – giving a total of £30,729.
2016-17 Her income will increase to £26,967, but her tax credits are taken away entirely. The budget changes leave our single mother £2,686 worse off.
Single, no children
Base income: £42,000
2015-16 This singleton pays income tax of £6,280 a year and £4,073 in national insurance. Her final take-home pay is £31,647.
2016-17 The changes will leave her very slightly better off. Her income tax is down by £80 but her national insurance payments remain the same. Her take-home pay stands at £31,727.
Single, no children
Base income: £55,000
2015-16 His income tax contributions stand at £11,403, while his national insurance contributions are £4,371. His net -annual income is £39,226.
2016-17 A drop of about £200 in income tax is the main saving for this worker. His national insurance payments remain the same, resulting in a slightly increased income of £39,429.
Single, no children
Base income: £110,000
2015-16 Our big earner pays around £35,427 in income tax and £5,447 in -national insurance, leaving him with a net income of £69,126.
2016-17 A £200 drop in income tax results in a saving for this worker, whose national insurance payments remain consistent with the previous year. His income now stands at £69,329.
COUPLES
Couple, both unemployed, three children, renting in Bristol £800pcm
Base income: £26,000
2015-16 They get combined total benefits of £26,000 – made up of jobseeker’s allowance, child tax credit, housing and child benefit. They would get £26,502 but this is over the maximum benefit cap of £26,000. In the case that one child is disabled, they get £32,507 and are unaffected by the cap.
2016-17 Lowering the maximum benefit cap means their benefits are limited to £20,000. Overall they will be £6,000 worse off. Where one of the children is disabled they are neither better or worse off due to the freeze in benefit rates.
Couple with two children, rent in Birmingham £700pcm
Base income: £19,000
2015-16 They currently pay just under £3,000 in tax and national insurance, -giving a net income of £16,007. They also receive £1,789 in child benefit a year. On top they get £8,378 in child tax credits and housing benefit, giving a total net income of £26,174.
2016-17 Following the budget their net -income increases by £80, but their combined tax credits and housing benefit falls to £7,586. Overall they are £712 worse off.
Couple with three children. Rent £1,500pcm, Lewisham, London
Base income: £27,500
2015-16 One of the pair works full-time and earns £21,500. The other works part-time earning £6,000. They have take-home pay of £23,707 topped up with child benefit of £2,501. They also get £5,035 in child tax credit, and housing benefit of £10,687. Their total income is £41,930.
2016-17 The increased tax allowance applies to the full-time worker meaning their income is now £23,787. But their combined child tax credit and housing benefit is reduced to £14,721. The changes mean that overall they are worse off by £920.
Couple no children two incomes and a mortgage
Base income: £29,000
2015-16 They have a combined net income of £25,894 after £3,106 is deducted in tax and national insurance contributions.
2016-17 The pair are better off by £160 overall due to the rise in both of their tax allowances.
Couple, four children, paying rent of £1,400pcm in St Albans
Income: £40,920
2015-16 After tax and national insurance contributions the couple receive a net combined income of £32,640. With four children they receive £6,348 a year in child benefit and child tax credit. They also receive housing benefit of £3,659 giving a total annual income of £42,647.
2016-17 The increased national living wage and the increased tax allowances mean their income is now £34,960. But cuts to tax credits mean their income from benefits and tax credits is down by £2,605. The changes leave them £286 worse off a year.
Couple five children, rent of £1,200pcm in Salisbury
Base income: £29,000
2015-16 The family currently receives £3,926 in child benefit, £9,983 in child tax credit and £7,288 in housing benefit. This is on top of their take-home pay of £22,807, giving a combined annual family income of £44,004.
2016-17 The changes mean their take-home pay rises by £80, but they lose £1,037 in benefits due to the cuts to tax credits. Overall they are £957 worse off.
Couple with one child
Base income: £45,000
2015-16 Their main breadwinner is a higher rate taxpayer and pays £11,574 in income tax and national insurance contributions, leaving net pay of £33,426. They also receive £1,076 a year in child benefit because no one in the household earns more than £50,000.
2016-17 They are better off by £202.70 due to the rise in the tax allowance and the increased higher rate tax threshold.
Gay couple, aged 45 and 55, not in a civil partnership, no children. Income 1, £48,000. Income 2, £31,000
Base income: £79,000
2015-16 This couple pay income tax of £12,683 and national insurance of £6,984. Their net income is £59,333.
2016-17 Following the changes they see a saving of £283 in their income tax, but there is no change to their national insurance payments. Their income therefore increases to £59,616.
Unmarried couple, no children
Base income: £95,000
2015-16 They currently pay a combined annual income tax bill of £16,806 and national insurance of £8,442 – leaving them with a disposable income of £69,752 a year.
2016-17 Their income tax payments will reduce by £406 to £16,400, while there is no change to their national insurance payments. Their income therefore increases to £70,158.
Unmarried couple, two children
Base income: £55,000
2015-16 Our couple pay £15,774 in tax and national insurance. They are also entitled to child benefit of £894 a year, reduced by half of what they would received if their income was £50,000 or below. This gives a total income of £40,120.
2016-17 Savings in income tax of £203 results in their income increasing slightly, while both national insurance and child benefit remain the same.
Unmarried couple, aged 38 and 40, one child
Base income: £120,000
2015-16 Our couple pay combined -income tax of £31,083 a year and national insurance of £6,804, but receive no child benefit. This leaves them with a joint net annual income of £82,113.
2016-17 The couple will see their income tax bill reduce by £283, but their national insurance payments will remain the same. They will be left with £82,396.
Married couple, with two children. Self-employed
Base income: £200,000
2015-16 This well-off couple have a combined income tax and national insurance bill of £82,531. This leaves them with a net -income of £117,469.
2016-17 Our couple will not see much change in their bank accounts. Their income tax is down by £43 while their national insurance payments remain the same, resulting in their net income increasing to £117,512.
PENSIONERS
Married couple, both pensioners. Joint state pension
Base income £12,000
2015-16 The joint state pension allowance stands at £185.45 a week. With pension credit their basic income is £230.85 a week, taking their annual income to just over £12,000 a year.
2016-17 There are no changes for the couple from a tax perspective as their income will still be within the personal allowance. Changes to the state pension are expected to be announced in the autumn statement.
Single pensioner. State pension plus private pension of £20,000
Base income: £26,029
2015-16 Our pensioner, aged 75, receives a state pension worth £6,029. She has a net annual income of £22,943.
2016-17 Her state pension of £6,029 remains the same (changes are expected in the autumn statement). She now has a net annual income of £23,023 – an increase of £80 – as a result of changes to personal allowances.
• All figures supplied by BDO, KPMG and StepChange Debt Charity in conjunction with entitledto. Some have been rounded to the nearest pound.
