What are the NBA salary cap exceptions?
Short answer
An NBA exception lets a team sign or acquire a player even when the salary would put it over the cap. For 2026-27 the non-taxpayer mid-level is $15,044,000, the room exception is $9,366,000, the bi-annual exception is $5,477,000 and the taxpayer mid-level is $6,064,000.
What is an NBA salary cap exception?
It is a rule that lets a team add salary above the cap. Without exceptions, a team over the cap could not sign or trade for anyone whose salary pushes its payroll higher. The exceptions are in Article VII, Section 6 of the NBA collective bargaining agreement. Each has its own amount, its own maximum length and its own limits at the aprons. The cap guide explains the cap, tax line and aprons these limits refer to.
What are the mid-level exceptions in 2026-27?
There are three versions. The mid-level exception amounts for 2026-27, per the NBA:
- Non-taxpayer. $15,044,000, for a team that stays at or below the first apron after using it.
- Taxpayer. $6,064,000, for a team whose payroll after using it is above the first apron.
- Room. $9,366,000, for a team that is below the cap and not entitled to the other two.
The non-taxpayer version is 9.12% of the cap and can run up to four seasons. The taxpayer version can run up to two seasons and can be used only to sign players, not to acquire them in trades. The room version is 5.678% of the cap and runs up to three seasons, per the CBA (Article VII, Sections 6(e) to 6(g)). A team that uses the room version cannot use either of the other two or the bi-annual exception in that season.
What is the bi-annual exception?
It is a smaller exception a team can use every other year. The bi-annual exception is 3.32% of the cap, which comes to $5,477,000 for 2026-27, per Hoops Rumors. It can run up to two seasons, and a team cannot use any of it in two consecutive seasons or after it has used the room exception, per the CBA (Article VII, Section 6(d)). The first apron blocks its use if the move would take payroll above that level.
| Exception | 2026-27 amount | Maximum length | Limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Non-taxpayer mid-level | $15,044,000 | 4 seasons | Payroll cannot go above the first apron |
| Taxpayer mid-level | $6,064,000 | 2 seasons | Signings only; second apron blocks it |
| Room mid-level | $9,366,000 | 3 seasons | Only for a team below the cap |
| Bi-annual | $5,477,000 | 2 seasons | Not in consecutive seasons |
| Minimum salary | The player's minimum | 2 seasons | No bonuses |
The mid-level figures are from the NBA. The bi-annual amount is from Hoops Rumors. The room figure is also on the NBA release.
What are Bird rights?
They let a team re-sign its own free agent above the cap. A player is a qualifying veteran free agent if he played under contract for each of the three previous seasons with his prior team, with limited exceptions for trades and waivers, per the CBA (Article I). That team can sign him for up to the maximum salary, per Article VII, Section 6(b). A non-qualifying veteran can be re-signed for up to the greater of 120% of his prior salary or 120% of the minimum salary for his experience, and an early qualifying veteran, who played for the team the two preceding seasons, can be re-signed to a contract of at least two seasons for up to the greater of 175% of his prior salary or 105% of the average player salary. The Bird rights glossary entry has the short version.
What is a trade exception?
It is a credit a team gets by trading away more salary than it takes back. A trade exception lets the team later replace a traded player with players whose combined salary after the trade is no more than 100% of the outgoing salary plus $250,000, per the CBA (Article VII, Section 6(j)). Above the first apron the $250,000 is reduced to zero. The expanded version has a larger formula, with 125% of the outgoing salary plus $250,000 as one of its measures, and both versions are limited by the apron table. A trade exception that comes from a sign-and-trade cannot be used by a team above the second apron.
What is the minimum salary exception?
It lets any team sign a player for up to two seasons at that player's minimum, with no bonuses, per the CBA (Article VII, Section 6(i)). The scale is in the minimum salary guide. A team above the aprons can still use it, because the apron table does not list it.
What should a player and an agent look at?
Agents notice that the exception a team still holds, more than its interest in the player, sets what it can offer in July. A team with the non-taxpayer mid-level can offer four years, while a team above the first apron can offer two at a lower number. Ask each team which exception it plans to use, how long it can run and whether using it limits the team's other moves.
The restricted free agent version of this is in the offer sheet guide, where the old team matches using room or an exception.
Sources
- 2023 NBA Collective Bargaining Agreement (Article VII, Section 6; Article I definitions)
- NBA: NBA sets salary cap for 2026-27 season
- Hoops Rumors (via Yardbarker): Values of 2026/27 mid-level, bi-annual exceptions
Data current as of October 17, 2026. Figures are linked where each one appears. Leagues and regulators update these rules; check the source before relying on a number.
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