From next week a string of changes are coming into force that could boost your earnings by hundreds of pounds.

It's all as a result of the new tax year starting on April 6, which has been used to alter allowances and thresholds, while other changes kick on on April 1.

“Happy New Tax Year! It’s time to celebrate by cracking open those shiny new thresholds and getting stuck into your fresh allowances," said Sarah Coles, Hargreaves Lansdown personal finance analyst.

Someone on the average wage, who is paying off a student loan, will see their take-home pay rise £217.21 a year as a result.

Someone making £50,000 will end up with extra savings worth £365 on top of that, while there are also more generous allowances for people selling second homes, saving money for children or putting cash into pensions.

There are also boosts for people on minimum wage or receiving universal credit.

This is what's changing:

1. Income tax - £130 extra

A person completing a self assessment tax return form
You get to earn more before you pay tax in April

You'll pay no income tax on the first £12,500 of money you earn from April - that's an extra £650 of tax free income compared with last year, saving people £130 in tax.

Things get better for people who make more than £46,350, with the limit for the higher 40% rate of tax rising too. From April 6 you won't pay higher-rate tax until you earn £50,000.

The Government estimates 32 million people will get a boost.

Laura Suter, personal finance analyst at AJ Bell, said: “Many of the population will get a pay-rise in April, when the amount everyone can earn before paying income tax is increased from £11,850 to £12,500, while the amount you earn before hitting the higher-rate tax band will rise from £46,350 to £50,000."


2. National insurance - £24.96 extra

The point you start paying National Insurance is also rising - from £8,424 to £8,632.

NI takes 12% of your salary above that level, so the move should save you an extra £24.96.

However, the level which NI falls from 12% to 2% is increasing too - from £46,350 to £50,000.


"This move wipes out a big chunk of the tax gain from the income tax break.”


3. Student loan threshold - £65

You'll earn more before your loan deductions come out too

After a long campaign, the government agreed that it would increase the amount of money you can earn before it starts making student loan deductions.

From April 6, people who started uni in the past 7 years can earn £25,725 before 9% loan deductions kick in, while people who went to university before that can earn £18,935 before seeing any deductions.

AJ Bell works out that will add £65 a year to the pay of people who started uni after 2012 and £54 to the pay of people who studied longer ago.


4. Extra 1% bosses forced to pay 10m people

There's a 1% boost to your wages if you save it

Saving money while you're working, to pay for you life after you've stopped, can seem an impossible task.

So, to make life easier, a few years ago the Government decided bosses had to enrol all their employees into a pension scheme if they weren't already in one - and help them top it up too.

To ease people in, the level of contributions started low before rising. But the 10million people who are saving this way are about to see their workplace pension deductions jump from 3% to 5% of their pay.

The good news is that bosses have to pay in more too - with contributions rising from 2% of salaries to 3% - meaning someone on the average salary will get £295.88 more from their employer if they stay enrolled.

Sadly, that's not money you'll see in your take home pay - but it will definitely help later on when it comes time to retire or cash in some of your savings.


5. Extra cash for retired Brits - £221 extra

The State Pension is also rising in April.

“Anyone in receipt of the state pension continues to benefit from the triple-lock, which pegs the payment to the highest of average earnings, CPI inflation or 2.5%," said AJ Bell's Tom Selby.

“With average earnings the highest figure this year, pensioners will enjoy a 2.6% increase in their state pension income from April 6th."

The old Basic State Pension rising £3.25 to £129.20 a week, and the new State Pension rising £4.25 to £168.60 a week.


6. Bigger pensions before tax kicks in

You can save more for your retirement tax-free too

You might not realise it, but there's a limit to how much you can save into your pension before it gets taxed.

If you have too much in there you face a tax of at least 25% on your savings and maybe as much as 55%.

So it's good news it's rising. And from April the Lifetime Allowance for pensions will increase with CPI from £1,030,000 to £1,055,000. Meaning you can save £25,000 extra before being hit by tax.


7. More tax-free savings for children

The main ISA limit - that is to say how much you can squirrel away to earn money tax-free in an ISA each year - has been held at £20,000.

The limit for lifetime ISAs and help-to-buy ISAs - where extra cash is added on top by the Government - is also not moving.

But the allowance for junior ISAs is rising - meaning parents can now save £4,368 a year on behalf of their children - £108 more than last year.

That's £364 a month for those with regular monthly payments.


8. Marriage Allowance - £12 extra for couples

For about £250 richer, not poorer

So far, 3.5 million couples are benefiting from Marriage Allowance - which was introduced in April 2015 - but many couples who could be eligible for cash are missing out.

Marriage Allowance lets lower income workers to transfer £1,190 of their Personal Allowance to their husband, wife or civil partner - if their income is higher.

This reduces their tax by up to £238 for 2018/19 tax year.

This will increase from £1,190 to £1,250, and the amount that can be saved will rise from £238 a year to £250 - an extra £12 of savings.

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) estimates around 700,000 couples are eligible for the free tax break, worth up to £238 this year, but haven't signed up.

The better news is you can back date the claim, so could get hundreds back.


9.  Workers who also claim universal credit - £630 extra

You'll be able to earn more before your benefits are reduced

The Universal Credit Work Allowance (the amount people can earn before benefits start to taper) will increase by £1,000 a year.

The 'work allowance' is the amount of money you’re allowed to earn before your Universal Credit payment is affected.

Your Universal Credit payment will then go down by 63p for every £1 you earn above this amount. This is called the earnings tape

So by raising this allowance, people can earn more money before their payments are reduced.


Disability benefits and premiums will also rise, as will Widowed Parents’ Allowance, Maternity Allowance and Pay, Paternity Pay, Sick Pay, Pension Credit and all carer elements and premiums.


10. More expensive houses passed on without tax

More of your house can be passed on tax free too

The Government is also raising the "Residence Nil Rate Band". This is a specific allowance for leaving property to direct descendants such as children and grandchildren after your death.

“While the tax-free amount for inheritance tax purposes has been stuck at £325,000 since 2009, the new residence nil-rate band gives a boost to anyone passing on their home – and it will rise again this April," AJ Bell's Suter explaind.

“From April 2017 those with a residential property were given an extra £100,000 inheritance-tax-free allowance, increasing to £125,000 last year and from April 6th this will increase again to £150,000.

“However, there is tricky small print with this allowance, as the property must be left to direct descendants, so a child, grandchild, or their spouse. Anyone with an estate valued at more than £2m will also start to lose the allowance by £1 for every £2 they are over this limit.”


11. Capital gains tax - £84 savings

You can now make more money from your assets before tax is applied thanks to in increase in the capital gains tax threshold.

This tax applies to money you make selling things that have risen in price - although your main home is excluded as is any money you have in ISAs or your pension.

Outside of that, thought you can be hit with up to 28% tax on profits over £11,700.

From April that limit is going up to £12,000, saving you up to £84.

12. Minimum wage rises - £691.60 extra

There's a decent rise for minimum wage workers too

National living wage – the minimum wage by any other name - is going up on April 1. That means more money in the posckets of an estimated 2million workers.

The rate is rising 4.9% from £7.83 to £8.21 an hour for those aged 25 and over - worth £691.60 a year to someone working a 35-hour week.

Rates for younger workers rise too.

They go up from £7.38 to £7.70 for people aged 21-24, from £5.90 to £6.15 for the 18-20 age group, and from £4.20 to £4.35 for those aged 16-17.

You can read our full guide to the April minimum wage rises here.