EV Salary Sacrifice Calculator
Calculate exactly how much you save on an electric car via salary sacrifice compared to a cash allowance. Incorporates the new 2026/27 4% BIK rate.
Vehicle & Sacrifice Details
Net Cost of EV
EV vs Cash Allowance
Taking the EV costs you £0.00 out of your pocket every month, which is less than the £0.00 in net cash you would receive from the allowance.
This means you are effectively being paid £0.00 a month to drive the EV compared to taking the cash.
How Much Can You Save on an Electric Car Through Salary Sacrifice?
Salary sacrifice is the cheapest way to drive a brand new car in the UK. By agreeing to lower your gross salary by the cost of the lease, you completely avoid paying Income Tax and Employee National Insurance on that money. You can check your general take-home pay impact using our standard Salary Sacrifice Calculator.
However, because you are receiving a vehicle from your employer, HMRC treats it as a "Benefit-in-Kind" (BIK). This means you must pay a special company car tax. The brilliant loophole with Electric Vehicles is that the government has set the BIK rate for EVs incredibly low to encourage adoption.
How Is the BIK Tax Calculated on an Electric Car?
Unlike standard Income Tax, BIK tax is not calculated on the monthly lease cost of the car. It is calculated entirely on the P11D value (the list price) of the car when it was new.
- First, you take the P11D value (e.g., £40,000) and multiply it by the EV BIK rate for the year (4% for 2026/27). This gives you the "BIK Value" (£1,600).
- You then multiply that BIK Value by your highest Income Tax band (e.g., 40% for a higher rate taxpayer).
- This means you will pay £640 a year in BIK tax, which works out to £53.33 a month.
If you are not using a salary sacrifice scheme and just want to calculate standard BIK tax, use our Company Car Tax Calculator.
EV BIK Roadmap 2026–2030 — Rates Will Rise
While the BIK rate for EVs is incredibly cheap, it is slowly rising. HMRC has published a roadmap detailing exactly what the rates will be over the next few years. If you sign a 3-year or 4-year lease today, your tax bill will slightly increase each April.
- 2026/27: 4%
- 2027/28: 5%
- 2028/29: 7%
- 2029/30: 9%
EV Salary Sacrifice vs Car Allowance — Which Is Better?
Many employers will offer you a choice: take the company car via salary sacrifice, OR take a monthly cash "Car Allowance" and source your own vehicle privately.
For an electric vehicle, salary sacrifice almost always wins. The cash car allowance is treated exactly like standard salary, meaning it is instantly taxed at your highest rate and subjected to National Insurance. A £500 monthly car allowance might only leave a higher-rate taxpayer with £290 in their pocket. By contrast, that same £500 put into a salary sacrifice scheme retains its full £500 buying power, easily absorbing the tiny 4% BIK tax hit.
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