NIC Series CA04: Class 2 & Class 3 NI Contributions-Direct Debit the easy way to pay
Direct Debit the easier way to pay
Direct Debit is an easy and secure way of paying your National Insurance contributions. Payment is made automatically from your Bank or Building Society account each month in arrears.
Direct Debit has many advantages:
it is easy to set up - just fill in the application form attached to this leaflet and send it to us. You will need a suitable account at a Bank or Building Society.
it runs automatically - once set up, your Direct Debit will run automatically. We will notify you of any changes in the contribution rate at least 14 days in advance.
it helps your budgeting - for people in business good cashflow and budgeting are essential. Direct Debit means that you have to plan for only one monthly payment in arrears.
it gives you peace of mind - payments are made on time, every time. So there is no risk of losing benefit because you forgot to pay.
The majority of self-employed customers (over 1.5 million) have already chosen this method.
The Direct Debit Guarantee
- This guarantee is offered by all Banks and Building Societies that take part in the Direct Debit Scheme. The efficiency and security of the scheme is monitored and protected by your own Bank or Building Society.
- If the amounts to be paid or the payment dates change, HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) National Insurance Contributions Office will notify you 10 working days in advance of your account being debited or as otherwise agreed.
- If an error is made by HMRC National Insurance Contributions Office or your Bank or Building Society, you are guaranteed a full and immediate refund from your branch of the amount paid.
- You can cancel a Direct Debit at any time by writing to your Bank or Building Society. Please also send a copy of your letter to us.
How to apply to pay by Direct Debit
If you are self-employed:
If you are newly self-employed, you must complete form CWF1 Notification of Self Employment, which can be found in leaflet SE1, Are you thinking of working for yourself?. For a copy of leaflet SE1, contact your nearest HMRC (National Insurance Contributions) office. Or you can ring the Self Employment Directorate Call Centre on 0845 91 54655. You can also write to HMRC National Insurance Contributions Office, Self Employment Directorate, Customer Accounts Section, Longbenton, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE98 1ZZ.
If you are not newly self-employed and are not currently paying your National Insurance contributions by Quarterly Bills, you must contact Self Employment Directorate, Customer Accounts Section, at the address or telephone number shown above before you complete the application form.
If you are not newly self-employed and are currently paying your National Insurance contributions by Quarterly Bills, fill in form CA04 (PDF 15K) and return it to us at HMRC National Insurance Contributions Office, Self Employment Directorate (APC), Longbenton, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE98 1ZZ.
If you are not self-employed
If you are not self-employed and wish to pay voluntary Class 3 National Insurance contributions fill in the application form CA04 (PDF 15K) and return it with the completed form CA5603 (PDF 154K) to your nearest HMRC (National Insurance Contributions) office. If you do not have form CA5603 (PDF 154K) please contact your nearest HMRC (National Insurance Contributions) office.
We regret that the facility to pay by Direct Debit is not available to Share fishermen.
How will payments be made?
As soon as we receive your completed Direct Debit application form, we will contact your Bank or Building Society to make all the necessary arrangements. Payments will then be made automatically from your account for as long as you wish.
If you are changing from Quarterly Bills to Direct Debit, your contributions will normally be collected by Direct Debit from the Sunday of the week in which you signed the form, or later if this week is already covered by a Quarterly Bill. You should pay your Quarterly Bill in the usual way. Although we will act at once to set up your Direct Debit, it may take some weeks before the first contributions are collected from your account. We will write to you to tell you when your contributions will be collected. Please ensure that you have enough funds in your account to meet these payments.
After that, payment will cover either four or five week contributions depending on the number of Sundays in the preceding tax month (the tax month ends on the 5th of each month).
Payments will normally be made from your account on the second Friday of each month. A regular check of your Bank/Building Society statement will reassure you that payments have been made correctly.
What happens if you are ill?
You do not have to pay any contributions for any complete weeks (Sunday to Saturday) during which you are ill. If you want to be credited with contributions for these weeks you must claim Incapacity Benefit. We will reduce your Direct Debit payments to take account of your sickness as quickly as possible. If your Direct Debit payments do not restart, please let us know immediately. For more details see leaflet IB 202 Incapacity Benefit - Information for new customers.
You must pay contributions for any part week of illness.
What happens if you change to another Bank or Building Society?
Please inform us if you change your Bank or Building Society (you do not need to tell us if you are only changing branches of the same Bank or Building Society). You will have to fill in another Direct Debit application form. Direct Debits cannot be transferred between different Banks or Building Societies.
What happens if your earnings are low?
If your earnings from self-employment are low, you may be granted exception from payment of Class 2 contributions. For more details see leaflet CF10 (PDF 952K) Self-employed people with small earnings, available from HMRC National Insurance Contributions Office, Self Employment Directorate, Customer Accounts Section, Longbenton, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE98 1ZZ, or from your nearest HMRC (National Insurance Contributions) office.
For information and advice
If you want more information and advice about paying your contributions by Direct Debit, you can ring the Self Employment Directorate Call Centre on 0845 91 54655. The Call Centre is open between 8.00 am and 5.00pm Monday to Friday. Or you can write to HMRC National Insurance Contributions Office, Self Employment Directorate, Customer Accounts Section, Longbenton, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE98 1ZZ.
For more information about Class 2 and Class 3 contributions see the following leaflets, available from your nearest HMRC (National Insurance Contributions) office:
- CA5603 (PDF 154K) - To pay voluntary National Insurance contributions
- NI 196 - Social Security benefit rates
If you are unhappy with our service
Leaflet COP1 'Putting things right, how to complain' gives details of our complaint procedures. You can get this leaflet from any Social Security office, Tax Enquiry Centre, Citizens Advice Bureau and main libraries.
Data Protection
HMRC is a Data Controller under the Data Protection Act. We hold information for the purposes specified in our notification made to the Data Protection Commissioner, and may use this information for any of them.
We may get information about you from others, or we may give information to them. If we do it will only be as the law permits, to check accuracy of information, prevent or detect crime, protect public funds.
We may check information we receive about you with what is already in our records. This can include information provided by you as well as by others such as other government departments and agencies and overseas tax authorities. We will not give information about you to anyone outside HMRC unless the law permits us to do so.
