Blue Jay Owner-Manager Tax Index 2026/27 Validation note Data checked: 5 September 2026 Prepared by Blue Jay Accountants Limited Technical lead: Brady Jackson ACMA, CGMA CIMA Chartered Management Accountant First published: 6 September 2026 Every published result was independently cross-checked against a separately built calculation model. The checks cover each tax, the salary giving the most cash, and the reconciliation of business profit to personal cash, profit left in the company, pension contributions and tax. For each published company comparison that varies salary, the separate model checks every whole-pound salary the company can fund, after employer National Insurance and any pension payment. All remaining distributable profit is paid as dividends. Equal cash results select the lower salary. Sole trader and company cash were compared from £20,000 to £300,000 profit at £1 intervals. Separate calculations checked every £1 of profit from £58,000 to £63,000, including the crossover points and maximum company advantage, as well as selected profits around other tax thresholds. The comparison covers whole-pound profits and salaries, not every possible penny. Calculations retain precision until each amount is rounded to two decimals. Headline tables round to whole pounds; differences are calculated before display rounding. These are calculation checks carried out by Blue Jay, not an external professional review. Figures confirmed for 2026/27 Under the baseline assumptions, a one-owner limited company produces more current personal cash than the sole-trader route only between £60,142 and £60,506 of annual business profit. Its maximum advantage is £15.33. The comparison checks profit at £1 intervals from £20,000 to £300,000. The maximum occurs at £60,249. At £60,141 the sole trader leads by £0.05; at £60,507 the sole trader leads by £0.04. The comparison excludes accountancy and administration costs. Any additional cost of running a company compared with operating as a sole trader would reduce its cash advantage. At £100,000 profit, the sole trader keeps £69,311.40 and the company owner keeps £65,209.62: £4,101.78 more as a sole trader. At £250,000 profit, the sole trader keeps £145,040.40 and the company owner keeps £129,065.96: £15,974.44 more as a sole trader. At £100,000 profit, company cash falls from £66,543.15 in 2025/26 to £65,209.62 in 2026/27, a reduction of £1,333.53. Each year uses the salary giving the most cash. Scope and assumptions Tax calculations use England, Wales and Northern Ireland Income Tax rates. Scottish Income Tax is not included in this edition. One shareholder and full-year director below State Pension age, category A National Insurance, England/Wales/Northern Ireland Income Tax. No other income, student loan, associated companies, accountancy or admin costs. No Employment Allowance in the main comparison. The company pays all available profit to the owner. The published data cover 57 profit levels from £20,000 to £300,000, in £5,000 steps, for each of 2025/26 and 2026/27. These findings compare annual personal cash, not every reason to incorporate. Money left in a company and company pension contributions are reported separately; later withdrawal tax is excluded. Full tax rules, assumptions and methodology: https://bluejayaccountants.co.uk/research/owner-manager-tax-index/#methodology If we identify a material error after publication, we will correct the affected figures, explain what changed and retain enough edition information for previous citations to be understood. Official sources GOV.UK Income Tax rates and allowances for current and previous tax years: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/rates-and-allowances-income-tax/income-tax-rates-and-allowances-current-and-past GOV.UK Rates and allowances: National Insurance contributions: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/rates-and-allowances-national-insurance-contributions/rates-and-allowances-national-insurance-contributions GOV.UK Corporation Tax rates and allowances: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/rates-and-allowances-corporation-tax/rates-and-allowances-corporation-tax HMRC: allocation of personal allowances: https://www.gov.uk/hmrc-internal-manuals/savings-and-investment-manual/saim1090 GOV.UK: National Insurance for company directors: https://www.gov.uk/employee-directors GOV.UK: Employment Allowance eligibility: https://www.gov.uk/claim-employment-allowance/eligibility GOV.UK: pension annual allowance: https://www.gov.uk/tax-on-your-private-pension/annual-allowance GOV.UK: employer rates and thresholds 2025/26: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/rates-and-thresholds-for-employers-2025-to-2026 GOV.UK: employer rates and thresholds 2026/27: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/rates-and-thresholds-for-employers-2026-to-2027