You need to pay Class 2 National Insurance contributions if:

• You’re self-employed earning over £6,515 a year (in 2021/22)
• You don’t normally pay National Insurance but want make voluntary contributions so you can qualify for benefits like the State Pension

Usually you’ll pay it through your Self Assessment tax return bill.

How much do I need to pay?

In the 2021/22 tax year, your Class 2 National Insurance contributions will be £3.05 a week.

That’s £159 per tax year.

It’s also possible that HMRC will remove Class 2 NICs in the future (they’ve been talking about it since 2015).

In any case, if your profits from self-employment go over £9,568 a year, you also need to pay Class 4 National Insurance contributions.

How can I pay it?

• online or telephone banking (same day)
• CHAPS (same day)
• at your bank or building society (same day)
• BACS (takes about 3 working days)
• by cheque through the post (also 3 working days)
• or Direct Debit (if you have not set one up before, it can take about 21 days)