National Insurance goes up from Wednesday - and four other changes still to come this month

National Insurance payments will rise from Wednesday as part of the government's plans to fund the NHS and social care.

The energy price cap hike, council tax rises and an increase in VAT have already exacerbated the cost of living crisis this month And now, with the start of the new tax year on Wednesday, April 6, another raft of changes will be coming into force.

Brits will see their National Insurance (NI) payments rise by 1.25 per cent. Payments will only be collected on wages above £9,880, although this rises to £12,570 in July – a threshold change announced by the chancellor, Rishi Sunak, at the recent spring statement.

READ MORE: Santander has launched a new savings account that offers big interest - and you only need £1

Employees would previously pay 12 per cent on earnings up to £50,270 and 2 per cent on anything above that. From April 6, the rate goes up to 13.25 per cent and 3.25 per cent respectively. For the self-employed, rates will go up from 9 per cent and 2 per cent to 10.25 per cent and 3.25 per cent.

How much more or less you will pay in National Insurance once the threshold rises depends on your current salary. According to money saving expert Martin Lewis, the point at which you’ll start paying more NI after the threshold change in July is around £35,000.

For example, someone earning £30,000 a year currently pays £204 a month in NI contributions. This will rise to £222 a month when the 1.25 percentage point increase comes in. However, when the threshold changes in July, the payments will drop to £192.

"Effectively the way it works on earnings is from over around £9,600, all the way up to around £35,000, you will either not pay any more, or lower down [the pay scale], will pay less National Insurance