Money skills that stay with you

Employees and workers must get a payslip on or before payday, showing pay before and after deductions [7] Source 7: GOV.UK: Payslips, employee rights. The minimum for under-18s and apprentices is £8 an hour from April 2026, rising to £8.31 in April 2027 [8] Source 8: GOV.UK: National Minimum Wage rates.

• National Insurance applies from 16. Employees pay 8% on earnings from £242 to £967 a week [9] Source 9: GOV.UK: National Insurance, who pays [10] Source 10: GOV.UK: National Insurance, how much you pay.
• Income tax: most people can earn £12,570 a year tax-free. Scotland has different bands [11] Source 11: GOV.UK: Income Tax rates and Personal Allowances.
• Your tax code is on your payslip. If the tax looks wrong, your code may be wrong too [12] Source 12: GOV.UK: Tax codes.

Example: 15 hours at £8 = £120 gross. That's under £242, so no National Insurance comes off.

The federal minimum wage is $7.25 an hour. Many states set their own, and you're entitled to the higher one if both apply [13] Source 13: US Department of Labor: Wages and the Fair Labor Standards Act.

• Social Security and Medicare take 6.2% and 1.45% of your pay [14] Source 14: IRS: Topic 751, Social Security and Medicare withholding rates.
• Form W-4 is the IRS form that affects your take-home pay, so ask a parent or guardian to go through it with you [15] Source 15: FDIC: Money Smart for Young People.

Example: 15 hours at $7.25 = $108.75 gross. Taking off 7.65% ($8.32) leaves $100.43, before any income tax.

Your employer reports your pay and deductions on a T4 slip [16] Source 16: Canada Revenue Agency: Employers' Guide, payroll deductions.

• EI premiums start from the first dollar, with no age limit. The 2026 employee rate outside Quebec is 1.63% [17] Source 17: Canada Revenue Agency: About the deduction of EI premiums [18] Source 18: Canada Revenue Agency: Payroll deductions tables, 2026 general information.
• CPP starts in the first pay dated in the month after you turn 18 [16] Source 16: Canada Revenue Agency: Employers' Guide, payroll deductions.
• Income tax: the 2026 federal basic personal amount is up to $16,452, and the lowest federal rate is 14% [18] Source 18: Canada Revenue Agency: Payroll deductions tables, 2026 general information. Provinces add their own, and Quebec has different rules.

Example: 15 hours at $17 = $255 gross. If you're under 18 and outside Quebec, EI of $4.16 comes off, and no CPP. Income tax depends on your province and what you've told your employer.

A pay slip should show gross and net pay, your hourly rate and hours, any loadings, deductions and super [19] Source 19: Fair Work Ombudsman: Pay slips.

• Tax-free threshold: if you're an Australian resident and earn only excepted income, such as wages, the first $18,200 is tax-free [20] Source 20: Australian Taxation Office: Your income if you are under 18.
• Super: the rate is 12%. Under 18, your employer only has to pay it for a week in which you work more than 30 hours [21] Source 21: Australian Taxation Office: Work out if you have to pay super.
• Tax file number: there's no minimum age to apply [6] Source 6: Australian Taxation Office: Children's savings accounts.

Example: a 15-hour week at $20 = $300 gross. If you're under 18, that's not more than 30 hours, so your employer doesn't have to pay super for that week.

• Up to £1,000 a tax year of income from self-employment or casual jobs like babysitting or gardening is covered by the trading allowance [24] Source 24: GOV.UK: Tax-free allowances on property and trading income.
• Over £1,000 before costs? You must register for Self Assessment by 5 October after that tax year [24] Source 24: GOV.UK: Tax-free allowances on property and trading income.
• The allowance doesn't cover work for your employer, or for a company or partnership owned or run by you or someone connected to you [24] Source 24: GOV.UK: Tax-free allowances on property and trading income.

• $400 or more in net earnings from self-employment means you have to file a tax return [25] Source 25: IRS: Self-employed individuals tax center.
• Self-employment tax is 15.3%, covering Social Security and Medicare. It's similar to what's taken from employees' pay [26] Source 26: IRS: Self-employment tax [25] Source 25: IRS: Self-employed individuals tax center.
• If you're claimed as a dependent, you can still have to file. For 2025, that included earned income of at least $15,750 [27] Source 27: HealthCare.gov: Tax filing requirement for dependents. A parent or guardian must file for you if you can't [28] Source 28: IRS: Publication 501 (2025), Dependents and filing information.
• Quarterly payments: self-employed people generally pay estimated tax each quarter, so check whether that applies to you [25] Source 25: IRS: Self-employed individuals tax center.

• Working for yourself means no employer takes CPP or income tax off for you. You're responsible for paying them when you file your return [16] Source 16: Canada Revenue Agency: Employers' Guide, payroll deductions.
• Form T2125 is how business income and expenses are reported [29] Source 29: Canada Revenue Agency: Report business income and expenses.
• Basic personal amount: up to $16,452 federally for 2026. Provinces set their own [18] Source 18: Canada Revenue Agency: Payroll deductions tables, 2026 general information.

• Income from your own business is excepted income, so it's taxed like an adult's, and the first $18,200 is tax-free if that's your only kind of income and you're a resident [20] Source 20: Australian Taxation Office: Your income if you are under 18.
• Hobby or business? A hobby you don't seek to profit from isn't a business. It can change if you start making money from it, such as monetising online content [30] Source 30: Australian Taxation Office: Are you in business?.
• Even if you're not in business, you may still need to declare payments such as income from providing services [30] Source 30: Australian Taxation Office: Are you in business?.
• Other income is different. Some income, such as a family trust distribution, is taxed at higher rates when you're under 18 [20] Source 20: Australian Taxation Office: Your income if you are under 18.