Airline Pilot Chooses Part-Time Work Over Full Salary to Avoid Punitive Tax Rate
A commercial pilot from Surrey has taken the drastic step of cutting his salary by a quarter to avoid being caught in what he describes as a punitive tax trap for those earning just over £100,000. Mark Brown, 41, said he deliberately reduced his working hours by 25% after realising that crossing the six-figure threshold would actually leave him with less take-home pay.
The £100,000 Personal Allowance Cliff Edge
Mark's decision stems from a long-standing UK tax policy where the personal allowance is reduced by £1 for every £2 of adjusted net income above £100,000. This creates a marginal tax rate of 62% for some earners in this bracket, as they lose both their tax-free allowance and pay higher-rate tax simultaneously.
"I do 25% less work and it's a lot more tax efficient," explained Mark, who lives in Guildford. "You could see it coming because it's been tax policy for a long time now. At some point, you'll run into the position when you get through that barrier into a six figure salary and there's a small window where you end up on a 62% tax rate."
According to government rules, the personal allowance completely disappears once income reaches £125,140 or above, meaning all earnings are subject to taxation.
Redirecting Time and Energy to Business Venture
Instead of working full-time as an airline pilot, Mark now focuses his additional time on developing Let Me Show You London, the tour guide business he runs with his partner Denisa Podhrazska, 43. His current net salary sits at approximately £70,000.
"It seems daft to be giving away more money than you're earning," Mark told reporters. "I have the opportunity to take that time and invest it into our business. We have a back up and I wanted to reinvest my time rather than spend more time in my day job getting taxed."
Career Frustration and Economic Impact
Mark, who trained as a short-haul pilot at a cost of £70,000 funded by a bank loan, expressed frustration that the tax system discourages peak productivity. Full-time airline captains in the UK typically earn between £100,000 and over £150,000 annually, while Mark's starting salary as a new first officer was £40,000.
"At my age, I should be at my most productive in my career, I should be able to give as much as possible to the economy," he said. "But because there's a punitive tax barrier there, I'm doing something else with my time. And it costs airlines a lot more to have lots of pilots on part time contracts. It just doesn't make sense."
He emphasised his substantial investment in the profession, including three years at university followed by two years of pilot training, with ongoing assessments every six months to maintain his licence.
Calls for Fairer Taxation System
Mark believes the current approach creates perverse incentives that ultimately harm economic productivity and service quality.
"If they had a fairer way of approaching taxation maybe there'd be more people being productive and you could collect more tax to spend in the community," he argued. "Perhaps they'd end up with more in the pot so more people could benefit."
He added that the "one size fits all" solution encourages those with alternatives to reduce their formal employment. "You've got people who would be willing to do more work but if people have the opportunity to do less or put their effort somewhere else then they will do it. Everybody loses out including the customer that uses the airline."
While acknowledging his situation as a "first world problem," Mark maintains it highlights a genuine flaw in the UK's tax structure that affects professionals at crucial career stages.
