How does voluntary national insurance work?
Answered 11 March 2026
Voluntary National Insurance Contributions
What the law says
The Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992 and its associated regulations provide the legal framework for voluntary NICs. There is no single legislative source retrieved that sets out the full scheme, but the following key points emerge from the statutory instruments and legislation found:
- Class 3 is defined as "a voluntary contribution to preserve or enhance entitlement to certain benefits, such as the basic State Pension."
- Persons working abroad who are no longer liable to pay UK NICs may pay voluntary Class 2 NICs under regulation 147 of the Social Security (Contributions) Regulations 2001 (SI 2001/1004), in order to maintain their UK NI record for certain benefits including retirement pension.
- Self-employed earners not required to pay Class 2 NICs (e.g. because their profits are below the Small Profits Threshold) may still be entitled to pay voluntary Class 2 NICs. From 6 April 2024, there is no longer a liability to pay Class 2 NICs, but the self-employed earner is still entitled to pay them voluntarily subject to statutory time limits.
- Regulation 61 of the Social Security (Contributions) Regulations 2001 allows time limits for paying voluntary Class 2 NICs to be extended where certain conditions are satisfied.
- Regulation 61B extended the time limits for paying voluntary Class 2 NICs for tax years 6 April 2006 to 5 April 2016, with the deadline ultimately extended to 5 April 2025.
HMRC guidance / practice
The two classes of voluntary NIC
There are two classes of voluntary NIC:
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Voluntary Class 2 – available to certain self-employed people not liable to pay Class 2 (e.g. profits below the Small Profits Threshold, ministers of religion, examiners/moderators, those running property/investment businesses) and to those working abroad.
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Voluntary Class 3 – available to individuals who wish to fill gaps in their NI record to preserve or enhance entitlement to the State Pension and certain other benefits.
Purpose: filling gaps in the NI record
Voluntary NICs are used to fill gaps in a person's NI record. HMRC (via DWP) historically issued Deficiency Notices to people with insufficient qualifying years, inviting them to consider paying Class 3 NICs voluntarily to make up the shortfall.
Benefits protected
- Paying Class 2 voluntarily can protect entitlement to: Employment and Support Allowance, Maternity Allowance, Bereavement Benefits, Basic State Pension, and Jobseeker's Allowance (shared fishermen only).
- Class 3 NICs (from 6 April 2017 onwards) count only towards entitlement to the new State Pension, though they can still be paid for earlier years to satisfy contribution conditions for Basic State Pension, Widowed Parent's Allowance, Bereavement Allowance, and related benefits.
Important caveat: new State Pension transitional rules
Under the Pensions Act 2014, those who were contracted out of the additional State Pension may find that paying Class 3 NICs for years before 6 April 2016 does not increase their State Pension, due to the complexity of the transitional rules. HMRC recognises this and Class 3 NICs paid prior to 6 April 2017 can be refunded in certain circumstances where the payment has not increased the State Pension.
⚠️ Important: Before paying voluntary NICs, individuals should contact DWP first to check the impact on their State Pension.
Payment methods
Voluntary Class 3 NICs and voluntary Class 2 NICs can be paid via:
- A single payment or Direct Debit through HMRC's online services.
- Those paying Class 2 from abroad may pay by annual lump sum or Direct Debit.
- Self-employed earners paying voluntary Class 2 via Self Assessment can do so at the time of filing their SA return, or by contacting HMRC later for an ad hoc payment request.
Late payment
If voluntary Class 2 NICs are paid after the end of the tax year following the one for which they were paid, they may be due at a higher rate.
Citation sources
Due to the unavailability of pension statements for the new State Pension introduced by the Pensions Act 2014, HMRC introduced regulation 61B of the SSCR 2001 to extend the time limits for paying voluntary Class 2 National Insurance contributions (NICs) for the tax years 6 April 2006 to 5 April 2016. The time limit was extended to 5 April 2023 but this only applies to those who: reach State Pension age on or after 6 April 2016 are entitled to pay Class 2 NICs had not paid the Class 2 NICs before
y way of state pension. On 13 September 2019, Mrs Garwood applied online for the state pension. On 27 November 2019 the DWP pension service wrote to Mrs Garwood confirming that the first payment of her pension of £381.76 would be made on 23 January 2020 in respect of the period from 6 January 2020 to 23 January 2020. The letter included the following section: Paying Class 2 or voluntary Class 3 National Insurance Contributions If you have gaps in your National Insurance contributions (NICs) for
Purpose Prior to 2013 the National Insurance and PAYE Service (NPS) automatically sent out letters known as ‘Deficiency Notices’ (DN) to anyone who was at least 35 years old and had less than 30 qualifying years for basic State Pension (bSP). The DN told the person that a specific tax year was ‘not qualifying’ for benefit purposes and gave them the opportunity to pay Class 3 NICs voluntarily or query the details held on their National Insurance (NI) record. History Years up to 1995-96 Prior to 1
NIM23501 explains who could pay Class 2 National Insurance contributions (NICs) voluntarily. If Class 2 NICs were paid after the end of the tax year following the one for which they were paid, they may have been due at a higher rate, see NIM23002. The higher rate provisions applied to voluntary Class 2 NICs in exactly the same way as they did when a person was liable to pay Class 2 NICs but paid them after the due date of payment.
From 6 April 2015, self-employed earners who are not required to pay Class 2 National Insurance contributions (NICs) under the Self Assessment (SA) system can, in certain circumstances, be entitled to pay voluntary Class 2 NICs. Regulation 89 enables such contributors to make payment of voluntary Class 2 NICs by an annual lump sum payment. HMRC will issue a payment request following the end of the tax year, and before 31 October. Payment of the voluntary Class 2 NICs should be made by the follow
The Pensions Act 2014 introduced the new State Pension (nSP) for all those who reached State Pension age (SPa) on or after 6 April 2016. Those who were contracted-out of the additional State Pension at any point before 6 April 2016 may now be precluded from paying Class 3 National Insurance contributions (NICs) for periods before 6 April 2016. A person’s entitlement to nSP is determined by their starting amount. It is calculated by comparing their entitlement to State Pension under the old and n
Those who satisfy certain conditions that allow them to pay voluntary Class 2 National Insurance contributions (NICs) for periods whilst working abroad, whether employed or self-employed When a person has left the UK and no longer has a liability to pay UK NICs then they can, if certain conditions are satisfied (see NIM33065), apply to pay voluntary Class 2 NICs in order to maintain their UK National Insurance record for certain benefits, including retirement pension. This opportunity to pay vol
Up to 5 April 2024 a self-employed earner was excepted from paying Class 2 National Insurance contributions (NICs) for any contribution week: in respect of the whole of which the earner is in receipt of incapacity benefit in respect of the whole of which the earner is in receipt of Employment & Support Allowance throughout the whole of which the earner is incapable of work in respect of which she is in receipt of Maternity Allowance throughout the whole of which the earner is undergoing imprison
Customers can access NDDS via their Online Services on the HMRC website. Customers must be registered for one or more of the following online services before they can set up a direct debit online: Self Assessment PAYE for employers Corporation Tax Construction Industry Scheme Machine Games Duty Customers can use NDDS to set up a single payment for: Self Assessment PAYE - including Class 1 National Insurance contributions Class 1A National Insurance contributions self-employed Class 2 National In
Some content of this manual is being considered for archiving. If there is content you use regularly, please email hmrcmanualsteam@hmrc.gov.uk to let us know as soon as possible. National Insurance Contributions are divided into classes: Class 1 payable by employers (secondary class 1 contributions) and employees (primary class 1 contributions) on earnings from employment and usually collected alongside PAYE. Class 1A payable only by employers and some third parties on most taxable benefits prov
Regulation 155A(2)(i) provides for HMRC officers to decide whether the time limit for paying voluntary Class 2 National Insurance contributions (NIC) can be extended. Some people who are self employed who do not have to pay Class 2 NIC or working abroad can pay Class 2 voluntarily, see NIM33600. The time limits for paying voluntary Class 2 NIC are explained in NIM23001. Regulation 61 allows for those time limits to be extended providing certain conditions are satisfied. For guidance about extend
Some content of this manual is being considered for archiving. If there is content you use regularly, please email hmrcmanualsteam@hmrc.gov.uk to let us know as soon as possible. Entitlement to contributory benefits depends partly on how many national insurance contributions the taxpayer has paid or has been credited with. Different rules apply to different benefits. Paying class 2 NIC allows taxpayers access to the following benefits, providing they satisfy the rules: Employment and Support All
NIM25007, and NIM25008 set out the circumstances in which a person is precluded from paying Class 3 NICs. For tax years from 6 April 2017 onwards Class 3 NICs only count towards entitlement to new State Pension. But a person is still entitled to pay Class 3 NICs for earlier tax years in any of those circumstances if it would enable them to satisfy the contribution conditions for the following benefits: Basic State Pension (where the individual reaches State Pension age before 6 April 2010) Widow