Rates by age and apprentices
Minimum wage under 16: no legal rate before school leaving age
Enter a date of birth and the nation of the school: the tool gives the earliest leaving date, from which the 16 to 17 rate applies.
From when the minimum wage applies
Can leave school
25 June 2027
| Turns 16 on | 10 May 2027 |
| Minimum wage then | £8.31 an hour |
| Turns 18 on | 10 May 2029 |
Below school leaving age there is no minimum wage; above it the 16 to 17 rate applies.
Workers below compulsory school leaving age, which is usually 16, are not entitled to the National Minimum Wage, so a 13, 14 or 15 year old with a paper round or a Saturday job has no legal hourly minimum. HMRC's eligibility guidance lists them among the people the law leaves out. The right starts once a young person is above school leaving age, and that day depends on the nation: in England and Wales it is the last Friday in June of the school year in which they turn 16; in Scotland it is 31 May or the start of the Christmas holidays, depending on the birthday; in Northern Ireland it is 30 June. From then the 16 to 17 rate applies, £8.00 an hour since 1 April 2026, and £8.31 was announced on 28 October 2026 for April 2027. Before that day, the child employment rules limit term-time work to 12 hours a week, ban work before 7am or after 7pm and keep pupils out of work during school hours.
Pay and hours for a 16 or 17 year old
Minimum per week
£160
| Per hour | £8.00 |
| Per week from 1 April 2027 | £166.20 |
| Legal weekly limit under 18 | 40 hours |
| Your hours | within the limit |
Rates and rules read by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Method
Why there is no minimum wage before school leaving age
The National Minimum Wage Act 1998 gives the right to workers who are above compulsory school age. HMRC's guidance names workers younger than compulsory school leaving age, usually 16, in its list of people who are not entitled. An employer paying a 14 year old £5.00 an hour for delivering leaflets is therefore not breaking minimum wage law, however low that looks next to the adult rates.
The age that decides is not simply 16. A pupil can be 16 for several months and still be of compulsory school age, because the leaving date is fixed by the school calendar. Until that date passes, there is no hourly floor, whatever the job. The same goes for work experience organised by a school, which HMRC also places outside the minimum wage.
School leaving dates in each nation
The four nations set the leaving date differently. Two birthdays show how far apart the results can be for pupils of the same school year.
| Nation | Rule on GOV.UK | Born 20 November 2010 | Born 10 May 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|
| England | last Friday in June of the school year in which the child turns 16 (16 by the end of the summer holidays) | 25 June 2027 | 25 June 2027 |
| Wales | last Friday in June, if 16 by the end of that school year's summer holidays | 25 June 2027 | 25 June 2027 |
| Scotland | 31 May if 16 between 1 March and 30 September; start of the Christmas holidays if 16 between 1 October and the end of February | start of the Christmas holidays 2026 | after 31 May 2027 |
| Northern Ireland | 30 June if 16 between 1 September and 1 July; 30 June of the following year if 16 between 2 July and 31 August | after 30 June 2027 | after 30 June 2027 |
A pupil in Scotland born in November can leave school, and so gains the right to the minimum wage, about six months before a classmate in England born on the same day. In England the end of compulsory school does not end learning: until 18 a young person must stay in full-time education, start an apprenticeship, or spend 20 hours or more a week working or volunteering alongside part-time education. That duty does not lower the pay. A 16 year old who works 20 hours a week next to a college course is owed the 16 to 17 rate for every hour.
Limits on work for children of school age
With no pay floor, the protection for pupils is a cap on time. The child employment rules allow part-time work from 14, or from 13 in some council areas, and the employer often needs a permit from the local council.
| Limit | Aged 14 | Aged 15, or 16 and still at school |
|---|---|---|
| Hours in a term-time week | 12 hours | 12 hours |
| On a school day | 2 hours | 2 hours |
| On a Sunday | 2 hours | 2 hours |
| On a Saturday in term time | 5 hours | 8 hours |
| In a school holiday week | 25 hours | 35 hours |
| Time of day | Not before 7am or after 7pm | Not before 7am or after 7pm |
These limits concern safety and schooling rather than money, and they stop applying once the pupil has passed the leaving date.
What changes on the leaving date
From the leaving date, the young person is a worker above school age and the 16 to 17 rate applies: £8.00 an hour until 31 March 2027. A weekend job of 12 hours then has to pay at least £96 a week. The child limits fall away and the young worker rules take over: at most 8 hours a day and 40 hours a week, with a 30 minute break after 4.5 hours.
Minimum wage per week, month and year
Legal minimum per hour
£8.00
| Rate that applies | National Minimum Wage (16 to 17) |
| Per week | £96 |
| Per month | £416 |
| Per year (52 weeks) | £4,992 |
For the summer job that follows the last day of school, the page on pay at 16 sets out the weekly figures, and the rate due from April 2027, £8.31, announced but still to be set in regulations. A 16 year old taken on as an apprentice is paid the apprentice rate, which is the same figure.
When an older teenager is paid nothing
Once school is over, unpaid work is the exception. HMRC treats a short, genuine test of skills as unpaid, but trial work that is real work for the business must be paid. A school leaver who thinks a job has paid less than the minimum can raise it with the employer, call Acas on 0300 123 1100 (Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm) or use the pay and work rights complaint form, which a parent can fill in on their behalf with their permission.