Rates by age and apprentices
Apprentice pay after the first year
The age is set to 21, as in the GOV.UK example: enter your start date and hours to see the date and size of your rise.
Apprentice minimum: first year and after
Minimum at the start
£8.00
| First year ends | 31 August 2027 |
| From 1 September 2027 | £13.21 (National Living Wage (21 and over)) |
| Weekly pay at the start | £240 |
| Weekly pay after year one | £396.30 |
After year one, an apprentice aged 19 or over moves to the rate for their age; under 19 stays on the apprentice rate. Age a year on is assumed one year older.
Once the first year of an apprenticeship is complete, an apprentice aged 19 or over is no longer on the apprentice rate of £8.00. They are owed the National Minimum Wage or National Living Wage for their age: £10.85 at 19 or 20 and £12.71 from 21, under the rates in force from 1 April 2026. The GOV.UK rates page gives the example of a 21 year old: £8.00 an hour in the first year, £12.71 once it is over. HMRC's guidance sets the date: the new rate applies from the first day of the pay reference period that begins on or after the completion of the first year, or the 19th birthday if that comes later. An apprentice under 19 stays on the apprentice rate even after year one. For a 21 year old on 37.5 hours a week the step is worth £176.63 a week. HMRC says the wrong use of the apprentice rate is a common reason for underpayment, and keeping an apprentice aged 19 or over on it after the first year heads its list of examples.
Unpaid working time and your hourly pay
Real pay per hour worked
£12.19
| Hours that count | 41 |
| Minimum for your age | £12.71 |
| Result | £21.11 short |
Rates and rules read by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Method
The rule in HMRC's words
HMRC's eligibility guidance says that once an apprentice aged 19 or over has completed the first year of their apprenticeship, they must be paid the minimum wage rate for their age group from the first day of the pay reference period that begins on or after their 19th birthday or the completion of the first year. Two conditions must both be met: being 19 or over, and having completed the first year. The rise starts with the pay period that begins once both are true.
The first year is twelve months from the start of the apprenticeship with the current employer. An apprenticeship that began on 1 September 2025 completed its first year on 31 August 2026.
One start date, four apprentices
Four apprentices began on 1 September 2025, each paid monthly from the 1st and working 30 hours a week. Their ages when the first year ended decide what happens on 1 September 2026.
| Age when year one ends | Rate from 1 September 2026 | Weekly pay before | Weekly pay after |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18 | £8.00, until the 19th birthday | £240 | £240 |
| 19 | £10.85 | £240 | £325.50 |
| 20 | £10.85 | £240 | £325.50 |
| 24 | £12.71 | £240 | £381.30 |
The 24 year old gains the most, £141.30 a week. The 18 year old gains nothing yet and moves to £10.85 with the first pay period that begins on or after their 19th birthday. An apprentice who started a year later, in September 2026, completes the first year in August 2027, after the April 2027 rise, and would move to the rates announced for that year: £11.27 at 19 or 20, £13.21 from 21.
Apprentice minimum: first year and after
Minimum at the start
£8.00
| First year ends | 31 August 2027 |
| From 1 September 2027 | £13.21 (National Living Wage (21 and over)) |
| Weekly pay at the start | £240 |
| Weekly pay after year one | £396.30 |
After year one, an apprentice aged 19 or over moves to the rate for their age; under 19 stays on the apprentice rate. Age a year on is assumed one year older.
The same move when the apprenticeship ends
The apprentice rate also stops when the apprenticeship itself stops. HMRC's example is an 18 year old in a hair salon: before the apprenticeship she is owed the 18 to 20 rate, during the first year the apprentice rate, after the first year the rate for her age, and if she stays on once the apprenticeship ends, still the rate for her age. Paying the apprentice rate before an apprenticeship starts, or after it ends, is on HMRC's list of common mistakes.
Training time stays paid throughout. After the first year, the hours spent on off-the-job training are paid at the new, higher rate, not the apprentice rate. HMRC's second example is a 25 year old in the second year of a nursery apprenticeship, whose off-the-job training must sit within contracted hours and be paid at least at the National Living Wage.
When the rise is missed
Take a 22 year old whose employer forgot the move for 13 weeks of 30 hours. The shortfall is £1,836.90. Arrears are recalculated at the rate in force when they are paid: settled after 1 April 2027 with the announced rate in force, the same shortfall becomes £1,909.16. Under HMRC's enforcement rules, an employer who receives a notice of underpayment also faces a penalty of up to 200% of the arrears, capped at £20,000 per worker.
The pay and work rights complaint form is the official route to HMRC; Acas answers questions on 0300 123 1100. The arrears page explains the back pay formula and the underpayment page the steps in order.