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National Minimum Wage entitlement

By law, your employer must pay a minimum amount on average for the hours you work. This is called the:

  • National Living Wage (NLW) if you're aged 23 or over
  • National Minimum Wage (NMW) if you're aged under 23 or an apprentice

1. Current rates

Wage band Current rate (from 1 April 2022)

Age 23 or over (National Living Wage)

 £9.50
Age 21 to 22 £9.18
Age 18 to 20 £6.83
Under 18 £4.81
Apprentice £4.81

The government reviews minimum wage rates every year and they're usually updated in April. See when rate increases must be paid.

Previous rates for 1 April 2021 to 31 March 2022

Wage band Previous rate (1 April 2021 to 31 March 2022)
Age 23 or over (National Living Wage) £8.91
Age 21 to 22 £8.36
Age 18 to 20 £6.56
Under 18 £4.62
Apprentice £4.30

See more previous minimum wage rates on GOV.UK

Who gets the apprentice rate

You're entitled to the apprentice rate if you're an apprentice aged:

  • under 19
  • 19 or over, and in the first year of your current apprenticeship agreement

If you're 19 or over and have completed the first year of your current apprenticeship, you're entitled to the minimum wage for your age.

Anyone who is employed as an employee or worker must get the National Minimum Wage or National Living Wage.

This is whether they are:

  • full time
  • part time
  • doing training essential for the job
  • working in a small or ‘start-up’ business

It also applies to:

  • agency workers
  • agricultural workers
  • apprentices
  • casual labourers, for example someone hired for one day
  • casual workers
  • employees on probation
  • foreign workers
  • home workers
  • offshore workers
  • seafarers
  • workers paid by commission
  • workers paid by the number of items made (piece work)
  • zero-hours workers

The only types of work that are not covered are those who are:

  • self-employed (by choice)
  • a volunteer (by choice)
  • a company director
  • in the armed forces
  • doing work experience as part of a course
  • work shadowing
  • under school leaving age

2. If you live in your employer's home

You're entitled to the correct minimum wage if you live in your employer's home, unless:

  • you're a member of their family
  • you're not a family member but share work and leisure activities and are not charged for meals or accommodation

There are times when employees or workers will be entitled to a higher minimum wage rate, for example:

  • if the government increases the rates (usually in April each year)
  • if an employee or worker turns 18, 21 or 23
  • if an apprentice turns 19, or finishes the first year of their current apprenticeship

The higher rate starts to apply from the next 'pay reference period' after the increase. This means someone's pay might not go up straight away.

Example

There’s a minimum wage rate increase on 1 April.

Sam gets paid monthly on the 15th of the month. The old rate will apply until Sam's next pay reference period starts on 16 April.

As a minimum, Sam should get paid:

  • the old rate for 1 April to 15 April
  • the new rate for 16 April to 15 May

3. Pay reference period

The ‘pay reference period’ is the period of time the pay covers. For example:

  • if paid daily, the pay reference period is 1 day
  • if paid weekly, the pay reference period is 1 week
  • if paid monthly, the pay reference period is 1 month

The pay reference period cannot be longer than a month.

Use the National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage calculator on GOV.UK to check if:

  • you're getting paid the National Minimum Wage or National Living Wage
  • you've been paid correctly in previous years

On average, you must get the minimum wage for each 'pay reference period' (the period of time your pay covers).

You work out your average hourly rate using:

  • your total ('gross') pay each time you're paid
  • how many hours you worked for that pay

Example

You're paid weekly, work 40 hours a week and your weekly salary is £410 (before tax is taken out). You're 24 years old and not an apprentice.

Your average hourly rate is £10.25 (£410 divided by 40). This is above the minimum wage for a worker aged 24.

4. What does not count towards the minimum wage

Some parts of your pay do not count towards minimum wage. These parts include:

  • tips and gratuities
  • premium payments (for example, extra pay for working bank holidays or overtime)
  • a loan from your employer
  • a pay advance

Example

You're 22 years old and not an apprentice. You're paid weekly and work 40 hours a week.

Your total weekly pay before tax is usually £400. This usually includes £100 in tips, so you'll need to use £300 as the starting point to work out if you're getting the minimum wage.

Your average hourly rate is £7.50 (£300 divided by 40). This is below the minimum wage for a worker aged 22. Your employer needs to pay you at least £9.18 an hour not including tips.

Commission

Commission counts towards minimum wage.

Your total pay including commission must give you the minimum wage each time you're paid.

Your employer must 'top up' your pay if you have not made enough commission to earn the minimum wage.

What can be deducted from the minimum wage

Your employer is allowed to make some deductions that could leave you with less than the National Minimum Wage or National Living Wage in your take-home pay. This includes:

  • tax and National Insurance contributions
  • paying back an advance or overpayment
  • pension contributions
  • trade union fees
  • a charge for accommodation provided by your employer (see accommodation rate information on GOV.UK)

What cannot be deducted from the minimum wage

Some pay deductions and work-related expenses cannot reduce your pay below the minimum wage.

These include:

  • tools
  • uniforms
  • travel costs (except getting to and from work)
  • training courses

For example, you might be required to buy a uniform for work. This is allowed as long as your total pay minus the uniform cost is still above the minimum wage.

For more detailed information about what can and cannot be deducted, see calculating the minimum wage on GOV.UK.

It's against the law for an employer to pay less than the National Minimum Wage or National Living Wage.

They also must keep accurate pay records and make them available when requested.

If an employer has not been paying the correct minimum wage, they should resolve the problem as soon as possible.

The employer must also resolve any backdated non-payment of minimum wage. This is even if the employee or worker no longer works for them.

5. Resolving the issue informally

It can resolve the issue quickly if the employer and employee or worker are able to talk informally about it.

To check if someone has been getting the right pay, you could:

Find out more about:

Formal processes for non-payment of minimum wage

If minimum wage is not being paid, the employee or worker can raise the problem formally.

This could be by raising a grievance – making a formal complaint to the employer. This can help get the issue resolved without needing legal action.

Or they can do one of the following:

  • complain to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC)
  • make a claim to an employment tribunal

If you have questions about minimum wage, or are not able to resolve an issue, contact the Acas helpline.

How HMRC enforces payment of minimum wage

If someone has not been paid the minimum wage, they can make a complaint to HMRC.

Complaints to HMRC can be anonymous. Third parties can also make a complaint, such as a friend, family member or someone the person works with.

If HMRC finds that the employer has not paid the minimum wage, action they can take against the employer includes:

  • issuing a notice to pay money owed, going back a maximum of 6 years
  • issuing a fine of up to £20,000 and a minimum of £100 for each employee or worker affected, even if the underpayment is worth less
  • legal action including criminal legal proceedings
  • passing on the names of businesses and employers to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) who may put them on a public list

To make a complaint to HMRC, either:

If the employee makes a claim to an employment tribunal

If an employee or worker has not been paid the minimum wage, they can make a claim to an employment tribunal.

They must choose either to do this or to complain to HMRC. They cannot take the same issue through 2 legal processes.

How much money an employee or worker can claim will depend on the type of claim they make. For example, if they make a claim for non-payment of minimum wage, they can claim for money owed going back 2 years.

They must make their claim within 3 months minus 1 day of the most recent date of non-payment or underpayment of minimum wage.

Find out about making a claim to an employment tribunal

Protection against being treated less favourably because of minimum wage

An employer must not treat someone less favourably (cause them 'detriment') if they:

  • become entitled to a higher rate of minimum wage
  • assert their right to minimum wage
  • make a complaint to HMRC or a claim to an employment tribunal

Detriment means treatment that leaves someone worse off, for example:

  • reducing their hours
  • overlooking them for promotions or development opportunities
  • saying no to training requests without good reason

If someone thinks they've experienced detriment because of minimum wage entitlement, they might be able to make a claim to an employment tribunal.

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