More than 25,400 people have signed an online petition proposing the introduction of a new tax code for pensioners.

The UK Government has rejected calls in an online petition calling for the introduction of a new tax code specifically for people over State Pension age. Petition creator Timothy Hugh Mason proposed doubling the current Personal Allowance of £12,570 to £25,140 for pensioners only.

In a written response on the Petitions Parliament website, The Treasury recognised that the State Pension is the “foundation of support for pensioners” but added that “doubling the Personal Allowance for pensioners would be untargeted and costly”.

More than 25,400 people have signed the petition, which argues that doubling the Personal Allowance would give pensioners a “higher tax-exempt limit, but wealthier pensioners would still pay tax” adding “we think that people with small private or workplace pensions are currently being taxed unfairly”.

READ MORE: People taking money out of pension pots could be due tax refund of nearly £4,000READ MORE: New HMRC income tax change due to start in April

The Treasury response states: “The government is committed to the Triple Lock – one of the most generous State Pension uprating mechanisms in the world – for the duration of this Parliament. This will increase the basic and new State Pension by 4.8 per cent next April, boosting pensioner incomes by up to £575 a year and strengthening retirement security.

“The Personal Allowance is already the highest amongst G7 countries. Doubling this allowance for all pensioners would be costly and untargeted – disproportionately benefitting higher income pensioners.

“As announced at the Budget, the government will ease the administrative burden for pensioners whose sole income is the basic or new State Pension without any increments so that they do not have to pay small amounts of tax via Simple Assessment from 2027-28, if the new or basic State Pension exceeds the Personal Allowance from that point.”

“The government is exploring the best way to achieve this and will set out more details next year.”

The ‘Introduce new tax code for State Pensioners with double the personal allowance’ has been posted on the Petitions Parliament website. At 100,000 it would be considered by the Petitions Committee for debate in Parliament.

The latest HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) data indicates 8.7 million pensioners are projected to pay income tax on their retirement income for 2025/26. It marks an increase of around 420,000 compared to the previous year (2024/25) and a rise of 1.85m from 10 years ago (2015/16).

The data comes following the freezing of the Personal Allowance thresholds at £12,570 until April 2031, while the full annual New State Pension is worth £11,973 in 2025/26.

The latest figures from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) show there are now 13 million people of State Pension age across the country.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves confirmed the annual uprating at the Autumn Budget on November 26. An uprating of 4.8 per cent on the current State Pension will see people receive the following amounts.

Full New State PensionWeekly: £241.30 (from £230.25)Four-weekly pay period: £965.20Annual amount: £12,547Full Basic State PensionWeekly: £184.90 (from £176.45)Four-weekly pay period: £739.60Annual amount: £9,614State Pension and tax

Guidance on GOV.UK states: “You pay tax if your total annual income adds up to more than your Personal Allowance. Find out about your Personal Allowance and Income Tax rates.

Your total income could include:

the State Pension you get – Basic or New State PensionAdditional State Pensiona private pension (workplace or personal) – you can take some of this tax-freeearnings from employment or self-employmentany taxable benefits you getany other income, such as money from investments, property or savingsCheck if you have to pay tax on your pension

Before you can check, you will need to know:

if you have a State Pension or a private pensionhow much State Pension and private pension income you will get this tax year (April 6 to April 5)the amount of any other taxable income you’ll get this tax year (for example, from employment or state benefits)

You cannot use this tool if you get:

any foreign incomeMarriage AllowanceBlind Person’s Allowance

Use this online tool at GOV.UK to check if you have to pay tax on your pension. The full guide to tax when you get a pension can be found on GOV.UK here.

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