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When you’re self-employed, you have to pay your National Insurance contributions yourself in your annual Self Assessment, together with any income tax you might owe.
You pay no NI contributions on the first £12,570 that you make.
You will also have to pay £2,126 (6%) on your income between £12,570 and £48,000.
Whether you’re employed or self-employed, you’ll likely have to pay National Insurance to qualify for certain state benefits.
Consult with an accredited tax accountant in a 30 minute, 1-1 tax advice session to stay on top of it.
National Insurance is a tax that we all have to pay in the UK to be entitled to claim certain state provided benefits. You have to pay it whether you’re employed or self-employed – although the type (or class) that you pay is determined by your employment status.
Here are some of the benefits that you’re entitled to as a result of paying National Insurance:
Well, of course, you could just use our National Insurance calculator above to see exactly what you’ll end up paying, but if you’d like a breakdown of the rates, check out the table below.
| NI class | Who pays? | How? | How much? |
| Class 1 | Employees earning over £12,570 | Deducted from salary | 8% (or 2% if you earn over £242 per week) |
| Class 1A/1B | Employers | Paid via PAYE | 13.8% |
| Class 2 | Abolished from the 2024/25 tax year | ||
| Class 3 | Voluntary contributions | Direct Debit | £17.45 per week |
| Class 4 | Self-employed earning over £12,570 | Self assessment | 6% (or 2% if you earn over £50,270) |
Well, let’s say 2022 was a weird year. After four chancellors, three prime ministers and numerous mini and maxi financial budgets, the National Insurance rate changed quite a lot of times. As a result, your calculation isn’t as straightforward as it is in more stable tax years. Take a look at our blog on the 2022 budget to see what happened.
No, not from the 2024/25 tax year.
When you earn less than £12,570 in a tax year, you’re now exempt from paying both Income Tax and National Insurance. The first £12,570 of your income is known as the Personal Allowance. You don’t pay Income Tax on it unless you earn over £100,000, at which point you start to lose your eligibility to it.
The table above shows you how much National Insurance you’ll owe based on your earnings.
Calculating your tax is one thing, but there’s nothing like speaking to a real, human expert, right? Get matched with your very own accredited accountant who will file your tax return and also give you a one-off tax advice consultation, for less.
Or see our Guides, Calculators or Taxopedia
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