NHS Scotland Pay Bands 2026/27
Gross / yr
£26,696–£133,044
Take-home / yr
£21,415–£69,849
These are the latest published 2026/27 figures, including the 3.75% award from 1 April 2026. The standard week is 36 hours, down from 37.
| Role | Pay point | Gross salary | Net take-home |
|---|---|---|---|
| Band 2 | Year 1 | £26,696 | £21,415 |
| Band 2 | Year 3+ | £28,988 | £22,809 |
| Role | Pay point | Gross salary | Net take-home |
|---|---|---|---|
| Band 3 | Year 1 | £29,103 | £22,886 |
| Band 3 | Year 3+ | £31,409 | £24,416 |
| Role | Pay point | Gross salary | Net take-home |
|---|---|---|---|
| Band 4 | Year 1 | £31,537 | £24,501 |
| Band 4 | Year 4+ | £34,303 | £25,854 |
| Role | Pay point | Gross salary | Net take-home |
|---|---|---|---|
| Band 5 | Year 1 | £34,544 | £26,009 |
| Band 5 | Year 3 | £36,911 | £27,527 |
| Band 5 | Year 5+ | £43,039 | £31,082 |
| Role | Pay point | Gross salary | Net take-home |
|---|---|---|---|
| Band 6 | Year 1 | £43,231 | £31,203 |
| Band 6 | Year 3 | £45,135 | £32,158 |
| Band 6 | Year 6+ | £52,679 | £36,303 |
| Role | Pay point | Gross salary | Net take-home |
|---|---|---|---|
| Band 7 | Year 1 | £52,845 | £36,386 |
| Band 7 | Year 3 | £54,863 | £37,170 |
| Band 7 | Year 6+ | £61,466 | £40,297 |
| Role | Pay point | Gross salary | Net take-home |
|---|---|---|---|
| Band 8a | Year 1 | £65,125 | £42,099 |
| Band 8a | Year 6+ | £70,303 | £44,651 |
| Role | Pay point | Gross salary | Net take-home |
|---|---|---|---|
| Band 8b | Year 1 | £76,888 | £47,895 |
| Band 8b | Year 6+ | £82,251 | £50,538 |
| Role | Pay point | Gross salary | Net take-home |
|---|---|---|---|
| Band 8c | Year 1 | £90,808 | £54,046 |
| Band 8c | Year 6+ | £97,338 | £57,051 |
| Role | Pay point | Gross salary | Net take-home |
|---|---|---|---|
| Band 8d | Year 1 | £107,810 | £61,870 |
| Band 8d | Year 6+ | £112,426 | £63,994 |
| Role | Pay point | Gross salary | Net take-home |
|---|---|---|---|
| Band 9 | Year 1 | £127,521 | £68,392 |
| Band 9 | Year 6+ | £133,044 | £69,849 |
How Scotland’s Pay Scales Work
If you work for NHS Scotland under Agenda for Change terms, your pay comes from a separate scale to the rest of the UK. Scotland operates its own AfC pay spine with its own values and point counts. Band 1 remains active, and Band 2 has two progression points. Pay is negotiated directly with unions through the Scottish Terms and Conditions Committee (STAC), with the Scottish Government as the employer-side negotiator.
The 2026/27 Pay Rise
3.75%
Consolidated pay rise for NHS Scotland AfC staff from 1 April 2026
Each year the Scottish Government negotiates a pay uplift for all AfC staff. Here’s what was agreed for the current year.
The Scottish Government agreed a 3.75% uplift for all bands via STAC, confirmed in January 2026 through circular PCS(AFC)2026/1. The uplift is consolidated into basic salary, meaning it counts towards pension and overtime calculations. It follows the 2025/26 award of 4.4%, which the same circular revised upward when that settlement’s inflation guarantee was triggered. That revision was backdated to 1 April 2025, and paid as arrears.
Pay Supplements
There are no HCAS zones in Scotland. Staff receive basic AfC Scotland rates without regional supplements. Some roles may qualify for Recruitment and Retention Premia (up to 30% of basic pay) on a case-by-case basis.
Unsocial hours and overtime
Scotland follows the same core AfC structure for unsocial hours but sets its own rates via PCS circulars. With the standard week at 36 hours from April 2026, hours above that are treated as overtime at Scottish rates.
On-call and sleep-in
The on-call availability allowance is £27.51 per session from 1 April 2026, up from £26.51 the year before, a rate itself revised when 2025/26’s award moved to 4.4%. Both on-call rates come from circular PCS(AFC)2026/1. That circular states no rate for sleeping-in.
Income Tax
Scotland sets its own income tax rates with six bands. Your tax code will have an “S” prefix (e.g. S1257L). How much tax you pay depends on which AfC band you’re on.
Bands 2–4
Most of your salary falls in the starter (19%), basic (20%) and intermediate (21%) bands, relatively modest rates.
Bands 5–6
Band 5 sits in the intermediate band, but the top of Band 5 (£43,039) is only around £623 below the 42% higher-rate threshold, so overtime or a pay-point increase could tip you over. Band 6 is where tax starts to bite: the entry salary (£43,231) is just below the threshold (£43,662), so most of the band is taxed at 42%.
Bands 7 and above
Bands 7 and 8a sit fully in the higher rate (42%). Band 8b and above move into the 45% advanced rate. If you’re on Band 8d or above, the personal allowance is gradually withdrawn above £100,000, meaning every extra £1 you earn costs you roughly 68p in tax. Band 9 loses the personal allowance entirely.
Salary sacrifice
If you’re near a threshold, additional pension contributions through salary sacrifice can reduce your taxable income below the higher or advanced rate, deferring tax on that portion of your salary. Our take-home pay calculator applies Scottish rates automatically, so you can see exactly what this is worth to you.
Pension
Scotland has its own scheme, the NHS Superannuation Scheme (Scotland), administered by the Scottish Public Pensions Agency (SPPA), not by NHSBSA. It is built on the same 2015 career-average design as the rest of the UK, so the benefits work the same way.
What differs is what you pay in. Scotland sets its own contribution tiers: 9 bands rising to 12.7% of pensionable pay, against 6 rising to 12.5% in England and Wales. So the same salary can attract a different rate on either side of the border.
Contributions are taken under a net pay arrangement: they come out of your pay before income tax is worked out, so you get relief at your highest rate straight away. That is not the same as salary sacrifice, which would also cut the National Insurance you pay. A net pay arrangement does not.