# What a part-time packer really costs an online shop: employer National Insurance at 15% above £96 a week, worked for five rotas > Pay is not the whole cost. Employer National Insurance is 15% of weekly pay above £96. Five invented rotas at £12.71 an hour, plus the under-21 case. - Page to cite: https://aeolookup.com/online-shops/part-time-packer-real-cost-employer-national-insurance-15-percent-above-96-a-week-online-shop-uk-2026-worked/ - Publisher: AEO Lookup (https://aeolookup.com/) - Section: Online shops, Fees, payments and postage - Published 29 October 2026 - Key fact: At £12.71 an hour and a £96 weekly threshold, employer National Insurance is £4.67 a week for 10 hours (pay £127.10), £14.20 for 15 hours (£190.65), £23.73 for 20 hours (£254.20), £42.80 for 30 hours (£381.30) and £57.09 for 37.5 hours (£476.63). Over 52 weeks that is £242.58, £738.27, £1,233.96, £2,225.34 and £2,968.88, or 3.67% to 11.98% on top of pay. For an 18 to 20 year old on £10.85 for 20 hours (£217 a week) the figure is nil. - Sources: GOV.UK, Rates and thresholds for employers 2026 to 2027 (gov.uk/guidance/rates-and-thresholds-for-employers-2026-to-2027). Read 29 October 2026. We did not read the pages on how National Insurance categories are chosen, how payroll rounds each pay period, pension auto-enrolment, holiday pay, or how Employment Allowance is claimed. The rotas and the shop are invented. You are about to take on a first part-time packer for the run-up to Christmas. The hourly rate is easy: the national living wage is £12.71 an hour for people aged 21 and over. What is less clear is what the shop pays on top, so here is the National Insurance part, worked. ## What the page says The GOV.UK rates page for 2026 to 2027 says the figures apply "from 6 April 2026 to 5 April 2027". For the employer (secondary) side it gives: - A secondary threshold of £96 a week, £417 a month or £5,000 a year. - An employer rate of 15% "on earnings above the secondary threshold" for the standard categories A, B, C and J. - For employees under 21 (category M) and apprentices under 25 (category H), 0% up to an upper secondary threshold of £967 a week, and 15% above it. - National Minimum Wage from 1 April 2026: £12.71 for age 21 and over, £10.85 for ages 18 to 20. The shop pays nothing on the first £96 of each week's pay and 15% on the rest. ## Five invented rotas All five are people aged 21 or over on £12.71, paid weekly, 52 weeks. | Hours a week | Weekly pay | Pay above £96 | Employer NI at 15% | Weekly cost | NI over 52 weeks | NI as % of pay | |---|---|---|---|---|---|---| | 10 | £127.10 | £31.10 | £4.67 | £131.77 | £242.58 | 3.67% | | 15 | £190.65 | £94.65 | £14.20 | £204.85 | £738.27 | 7.45% | | 20 | £254.20 | £158.20 | £23.73 | £277.93 | £1,233.96 | 9.34% | | 30 | £381.30 | £285.30 | £42.80 | £424.10 | £2,225.34 | 11.22% | | 37.5 | £476.63 | £380.63 | £57.09 | £533.72 | £2,968.88 | 11.98% | Check the arithmetic. 10 hours: 10 x 12.71 is 127.10; minus 96 is 31.10; 15% of that is 4.665. 20 hours: 20 x 12.71 is 254.20; minus 96 is 158.20; 15% is 23.73; times 52 is 1,233.96. 30 hours: 30 x 12.71 is 381.30; minus 96 is 285.30; 15% is 42.795; times 52 is 2,225.34. 37.5 hours: 37.5 x 12.71 is 476.625; minus 96 is 380.625; 15% is 57.094; times 52 is 2,968.88. Weekly figures in the table are rounded to the penny, annual figures come from the unrounded weekly amount. The first £96 is free, so the percentage climbs as hours rise. A 10-hour packer adds under 4 pence in the pound; a full week adds nearly 12. Payroll software works pay period by pay period and rounds as it goes. If you use the annual £5,000 threshold instead (20 hours: £13,218.40 minus £5,000, times 15%) you get £1,232.76, about £1.20 less over the year, because 52 x £96 is £4,992. Expect your payroll figures to differ by pennies from this table. ## The under-21 case An 18 to 20 year old on £10.85 for 20 hours earns £217.00 a week, which is £11,284 over 52 weeks. That is far below the £967 weekly upper threshold, so the page's 0% applies and the shop pays no employer National Insurance on that pay. Whether the person is in category M depends on their age, and we did not read how categories are set in payroll, so check that before relying on it. ## What is not in the table - Holiday pay, pension contributions and any bonus. We did not read those pages. - Employment Allowance. A shop that is eligible can take up to £10,500 off its annual employer National Insurance, which would cover every figure in the right-hand column. See the Employment Allowance guide below for who qualifies. - The employee's own National Insurance and tax, which come out of their pay and are not an extra cost to the shop. ## What to do this week 1. Pick the hours you will actually offer and find the row nearest to it. 2. Add 15% of everything above £96 a week to the hourly cost when you set the budget. 3. Note the person's date of birth, since age decides both the minimum wage and the category. 4. Check whether the shop can claim Employment Allowance before you rule the hire out on cost. 5. Run the first payroll through approved software and compare it with this table. For the wage rates themselves see [the Christmas temp packers minimum wage guide](https://aeolookup.com/online-shops/christmas-temp-packers-minimum-wage-rates-online-shop-uk-2026-worked/). For the allowance, see [Employment Allowance for a first employee](https://aeolookup.com/online-shops/employment-allowance-10500-online-shop-first-employee-which-month-it-runs-out-worked/), and for absence costs [statutory sick pay for a first employee](https://aeolookup.com/online-shops/statutory-sick-pay-first-employee-online-shop-123-25-a-week-or-80-percent-of-earnings-which-is-lower-worked/). Overlyft ![](https://aeolookup.com/img/d/ours-badge.png) can set up AI staff who join your team, take the rota and hourly rate, work out each packer's weekly pay and employer National Insurance, and draft the monthly cost sheet for a person to check and approve. This is general information, not advice. Check GOV.UK before you rely on it. --- ![](https://aeolookup.com/img/d/owner-line.png) General information for UK small firms, not legal, tax or financial advice.