If I am not liable to pay NI can I pay voluntary contributions?

If you have no liability to pay NI on a certain voyage, you may still be able to pay voluntary contributions, which help make a year ‘qualify’ for certain benefits and count toward your State Pension.

You may have paid (or been credited with) enough contributions from other earnings in the year to make that year qualify, so you may not need to pay voluntary contributions. Once you have paid them, voluntary contributions are not always fully refundable, and you could end up paying too much.

If you need further guidance on whether you need to pay voluntary contributions, and if so, how much, you may wish to wait until the tax year has ended (5 April each year) and complete the mariner questionnaire (PDF 17K).