The tax system in this country is unfair and penalises hard work

[renouncefifty]

I have just finished an assignment working 20 days straight and put in nearly 300 hours. Im exhausted but have a week off to recuperate.

I get overtime for every hour over 8 hours a day I work and overtime for weekends all day. I just realised I've "earnt" £9000 this month which sounds fantastic BUT over £3000 is going in Tax and god knows how much in NI. I dont get a full personal tax allowance as im taxed on my private health insurance premium. I will be lucky to see 5.5k of that money. Oh im in scotland so we pay a penny more per pound in tax also.

I just think sometimes why bother ?

Diamond shoes pah !

I know a lot of people work hard for less. I really do know that. BUT what incentive is there to work harder when the government takes half ? Can you imagine the extra money floating around the economy if people earning middle incomes payed say 30% tax instead of 41%

It may sound a lot but its not as if my kids go to private school and we holiday in the maldives ! We have a mortgage to pay and decorating to do like everyone else. Our holiday was in a static caravan in May !

I always think overtime is the worst if you are a higher rate tax payer.

You pay NI & 40% tax on the whole of that amount.

Yes I know not everyone is so lucky but it is hard when you see how much tax has been paid that month!

My husband and I are high earners and while we work hard there are people working harder for an order of magnitude less. I feel very comfortable earning a high salary and would be happy to pay more in tax than I do now.

I agree. Getting a bonus to see 40% go in tax and another % in NI takes the shine off. I think the tax threshold is too low for higher rate tax .

Eddie, you do realise some people have never had a pay rise in their life? Why should you get child benefit if your husband is a high earner? As I said to the OP, would you rather have to pay (a large amount, no doubt) every time you needed medical treatment? In the US I believe you’re billed around $10,000 if you have to call an ambulance. Sounds great doesn’t it!

9k a month doesn't make you a middle earner op.

I understand your frustrations at the tax, although I don't earn nearly as much in a 'good' profession as we aren't paid overtime. BUT ultimately it's your decision to work those hours and spend all that time away from your family - your reward is the pay. If you think the pay is worth it then continue and if you don't then stop and look for a more family friendly job with hours to match and your tax bill will go down accordingly

I'm really sorry but if you have got £5,500 net for a month's work, you are not a 'middle earner'. I accept though that this isn't a standard month for you.

And don't forget the £4bn we're investing in Africa...

Given that the British empire completely fucked up these countries, it should pay something back!!

Too odd socks

You know there is a website where you can pay additional tax to HMRC .... so please im waiting with baited fucking breath for you to pay more tax than you currently have to ..... please post evidence of your virtue signalling ....

www.ft.com/content/4b3e6db0-e57a-11e7-8b99-0191e45377ec

people earning middle incomes

middle?!?!?

You’re a higher earner.

In fact only 1.2% of earner earn enough to pay higher rate tax. So we'll outside 'middle'

www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/616452/Income_Tax_Liabilities_Statistics_May_2017.pdf

Eddie
It’s not about you feeling robbed or grateful for what you have. It’s about, where do you expect taxes to come from if not from higher earners? And I say that as a very high earner myself. Maybe low income earners be taxed at the same rate, so they take home virtually nothing at all. That’s seems fairer, eh?

On the one hand I’m like “DAM I pay a lot of tax”

On the other hand, I’m like “DAM we need more spending in education, NHS and frontline services...”

OP you can always chuck the extra cash straight into your pension. Avoids the tax AND bumps up your pension.

Johnny, because the child benefit is in my name, and I'm not a high earner. But because we are married, we loose out. Well, actually my child loses out. Like OP, we have a mortgage and bills like everyone else, don't have much in the way of holidays and certainly no private schooling!!! It's just disheartening to see so much being taken and so little in return.

@EddieVeddersfoxymop We qualify for nothing that our tax funds

NHS?
Defence?
police?
Education?
Infrastructure?
(Etc etc)

And if it was an unusual payment and you don't usually earn that much, then you should get a rebate at the end of the tax year?

Can you imagine the extra money floating around the economy if people earning middle incomes payed say 30% tax instead of 41%

Try being in the sodding marginal tax zone of 62%... now that’s a shitter.

I'm a middle earner and quite happy to pay tax. God knows I've taken out my fair share in terms of state education for children, use of the NHS. Plus knowing that there is a safety net should the worst happen. Yes, the NHS is on its knees but its still far, far better than not having any state healthcare.

No rebate. I will probably do the same hours maybe a little less next month.

I could contract but I value the company I work for.

By the way its not just nurses and teachers that do good hard work you know ! Some of us are literally keeping the lights on in those hospitals and schools. We all have a contribution to society

Totally agree OP.

As a PAYE earner you do have one option.

Stick the whole lot in your pension. Probably too late to do salary sacrifice (so you get the NI saved too), but not too late to get a full income tax rebate.

I sympathize

Sorry my post should have said additional tax rate payers at 1.2%

Higher tax rate payers are nearer 12%...so still no Where near middle

Esker, fair point but what I meant (and explained badly) was that we lost child benefit, we don't get childcare help, no tax credits, we were hit with a massive increase in our Council Tax, and in Scotland we now pay yet more income tax. Add in the increase to almost every bill and it does irk somewhat that we have seemingly less and less when we pay more and more.

Of course this country doesn't penalise hard work. Many people work hard all of their lives and hardly earn enough for a pension.

This country taxes higher rates of pay.

We qualify for nothing that our tax funds

But that’s just not true is it. You may not qualify for benefits but you receive the benefits of general government spending including in particular the NHS.