NIM33770 - Secondary contributor: special rules: worker employed on the UK Continental Shelf
Regulation 114(4) Social Security (Contributions) Regulations (SSCR) 2001
Regulation 114(4)(a) - (c) SSCR 2001 prescribes the ‘secondary contributor’ where a worker is employed on the UK Continental Shelf (UKCS) as in Regulation 114(1) SSCR 2001 and is on or in connection with an offshore installation, see NIM33860.
The ‘secondary contributor’ is
- the employer, if they are present in Great Britain; or
- the associated company, where the employer is not present in Great Britain but has an associated company in Great Britain, see NIM33850; or
- the oil field licensee, (who holds a license under Part 1 of the Petroleum Act 1998), where the employer is not present and does not have an associated company present in Great Britain.
Where b. above applies and the employer has more than one associated company present in Great Britain, the associated company is the one which has the greatest taxable total profit within the meaning of section 4 of the Corporation Tax Act 2010 for the accounting period which precedes the tax year in which the contributions are due.There are exceptions where Regulation 114(4) SSCR 2001 does not apply to certain UKCS workers who
- are employed in a capacity as defined in the table below;
- hold an appropriate certificate; and
- whose presence on the ship is required in order to meet the requirement of regulation 46(1)(c) of the Merchant Shipping (Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping) Regulations 2015.
| Capacity in which the continental shelf worker is employed | Description of the certificate |
|---|---|
| Master or chief mate on a ship of 3000 gross tons or more. | A certificate which complies with regulation 6 of the Merchant Shipping Regulations. |
| Master or chief mate on a ship of less than 3000 gross tons. | A certificate which complies with regulation 6 of the Merchant Shipping Regulations. |
| Officer in charge of an engineering watch in a manned engine-room, or a designated duty engineer officer in a periodically unmanned engine-room, on a ship powered by main propulsion machinery of 750kW propulsion power or more. | A certificate which complies with regulation 6 of the Merchant Shipping Regulations. |
| Chief engineer officer or second engineer officer on a ship powered by main propulsion machinery of between 750kW and 3000kW propulsion power. | A certificate which complies with regulation 6 of the Merchant Shipping Regulations. |
| Rating forming part of a navigational watch on a ship of 500 gross tons or more and whose duties are skilled in nature. | A certificate issued under regulation 14 of the Merchant Shipping Regulations. |
| Rating forming part of an engine-room watch or designated to perform duties in a periodically unmanned engine-room on a ship powered by main propulsion machinery of 750kW propulsion power or more. | A certificate issued under regulation 15 of the Merchant Shipping Regulations |
Where both regulation 114 and regulations 115 - 125 Case C Mariners apply, regulation 114 takes precedence.
There are some people working on vessels in the Oil and Gas industry who will be exempt, as the vessels they are working on is not a structure that is caught by the rules, see NIM33860.