When will the NHS pay rise be paid for 2025?
In May 2025, a new NHS pay rise was announced, with all staff on the Agenda for Change pay scale being awarded a 3.6% pay rise.
As with previous years, this pay agreement was not announced in time for the new financial year, which begins on April 1st. Initially it was not clear when NHS staff would actually receive updated pay in their monthly pay packets.
However, in June 2025 the government announced that pay increases will be implemented in time for August’s monthly pay.
Staff will receive their new pay and pay backdated to April on their normal monthly pay day.
Find the answers to some FAQs about backdated pay below:
Will the NHS pay rise be paid in August?
Yes, the NHS pay rise for 2025/26 will be paid (including backdated pay for April, May, June and July) in line with normal monthly pay arrangements in August 2025.
Because of the August bank holiday, this pay might arrive earlier in the month than usual. If your normal pay day is the 23rd, 24th or 25th of the month, you will receive all your pay on Friday 22nd August.
Will the NHS pay rise be taxed?
Yes, the NHS pay rise will be taxed normally. You won’t pay any more tax compared to if the pay had been included in your monthly pay between April-July.
Will I pay pension contributions on my backdated pay?
Yes, you will pay pension contributions on backdated pay. This is likely to significantly reduce the total amount of backdated pay you actually receive, given NHS pension contributions can be up to 12.5% of total pay. This year’s bands for pension contributions have already been adjusted for inflation, but they will change again slightly to reflect this years above-inflation pay rise.
This could mean a very slightly higher (or lower) contribution “in arrears” to pension contributions for staff in the following groups:
- Band 4 staff with less than 3 years of experience
- Band 8a staff with at least 5 years of experience
These contribution changes will be confirmed before August 2025.
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The guide includes tips and tactics including:
- How to avoid the supporting statement mistake that sends more than 75% of applications straight to the bin;
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