Nationwide tax warning for customers getting £100 payments from Wednesday
More than four million Nationwide customers are due to receive a £100 bonus this month.
Nationwide has issued a tax warning for customers due to receive one-off £100 bonus payments from Wednesday. The building society is dishing out the free payments to 4.4 million of its eligible current account customers in June after announcing profits of £2 billion for the year up to March 31, 2026.
The £100 bonuses come as part of Nationwide’s Fairer Share programme, which was set up in 2023 to reward customers who bank with the building society by allowing them to share in some of the profits. Since 2023, Nationwide has paid out more than £1.5 billion to eligible members and a total of £4.4 million is due to be paid out to qualifying account holders this month.
The £100 bonus payments will be paid to all eligible Nationwide members between Wednesday, June 10, and Tuesday, June 30, 2026.
The money will be paid into customers’ Nationwide current accounts by electronic transfer and will appear on bank statements as ‘Nationwide Fairer Share Payment’.
Nationwide said the £100 payment is treated as interest for UK income tax purposes and it is not required to deduct any tax from it.
But customers may be liable to pay income tax on the payment if their total amount of interest in the 2026/27 tax year exceeds the Personal Savings Allowance.
Nationwide said: “The payment is treated as interest for UK income tax purposes. We are not required to deduct any tax from the payment, but we will report it to HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC).
“You may be liable for income tax on the payment, depending on whether the total amount of interest you have received in the tax year is more than your Personal Savings Allowance.”
The Personal Savings Allowance allows most people to earn up to £1,000 in interest across their savings and current accounts without paying tax on it in each tax year from April 6 to April 5, but the amount depends on which Income Tax band you’re in.
So, depending on your personal circumstances, you may be required to pay tax on interest that exceeds your Personal Savings Allowance, but HMRC will normally contact you if this happens and change your tax code to collect the amount owed.
Explaining how the Personal Savings Allowance threshold works, Nationwide said: “The Personal Savings Allowance amount is set by the Government and depends on your Income Tax band.
In the current tax year:
basic rate taxpayers (20%) can earn £1,000 in tax-free interest each year
higher rate taxpayers (40%) can earn £500 in tax-free interest each year
additional rate taxpayers (45%) do not get an allowance
“The interest you earn on your Nationwide savings accounts may be tax-free up to your Personal Savings Allowance.
“Cash ISAs have their own, separate ISA allowance. The interest you earn on our cash ISAs does not contribute to your Personal Savings Allowance.”
To check how much interest you’ve earned, Nationwide can provide an interest certificate for certain amounts which shows the interest earned on Nationwide savings covering up to the last five tax years.
