Social Security Contributions and Benefits (Northern Ireland) Act 1992

1(1)For the purposes of determining whether Class 1 contributions are payable in respect of earnings paid to an earner in a given week and, if so, the amount of the contributions—

(a)all earnings paid to him or for his benefit in that week in respect of one or more employed earner’s employments under the same employer shall, except as may be provided by regulations, be aggregated and treated as a single payment of earnings in respect of one such employment; and

(b)earnings paid to him or for his benefit in that week by different persons in respect of different employed earner’s employments shall in prescribed circumstances be aggregated and treated as a single payment of earnings in respect of one such employment;

and regulations may provide that the provisions of this sub-paragraph shall have effect in cases prescribed by the regulations as if for any reference to a week there were substituted a reference to a period prescribed by the regulations.

[F1(2)Where earnings in respect of employments which include any contracted-out employment and any employment which is not a contracted-out employment are aggregated under sub-paragraph (1) above, then, except as may be provided by regulations—

(a)if the aggregated earnings exceed the current lower earnings limit, the amount of the primary Class 1 contribution in respect of the aggregated earnings shall be determined in accordance with sub-paragraph (3) below; and

(b)if the aggregated earnings exceed the current earnings threshold, the amount of the secondary Class 1 contribution in respect of the aggregated earnings shall be determined in accordance with sub-paragraph (6) below.]

[F2(3)The amount of the primary Class 1 contribution shall be the aggregate of the amounts determined under the following paragraphs (applying earlier paragraphs before later ones)—

(a)if the aggregated earnings are paid to or for the benefit of an earner in respect of whom minimum contributions are payable under section 39(1) of the Pensions Act (contributions to personal pension schemes), the amount obtained by applying the rate of primary Class 1 contributions that would apply if all the aggregated earnings were attributable to employments which are not contracted-out to such part of the aggregated earnings so attributable as [F3exceeds the current lower earnings limit and] does not exceed the current upper earnings limit (referred to in this paragraph as “the APPS earnings”);

(b)if some of the aggregated earnings are attributable to COMPS service, the amount obtained by applying the rate of primary Class 1 contributions that would apply if all the aggregated earnings were attributable to COMPS service—

(i)to such part of the aggregated earnings attributable to COMPS service as [F3exceeds the current lower earnings limit and] does not exceed the current upper earnings limit; or

(ii)if paragraph (a) applies, to such part of the earnings attributable to COMPS service as, when added to the APPS earnings, [F3exceeds the current lower earnings limit and] does not exceed the current upper earnings limit;

(c)if some of the aggregated earnings are attributable to COSRS service, the amount obtained by applying the rate of primary Class 1 contributions that would apply if all the aggregated earnings were attributable to COSRS service—

(i)to such part of the aggregated earnings attributable to COSRS service as [F3exceeds the current lower earnings limit and] does not exceed the current upper earnings limit; or

(ii)if paragraph (a) or (b) applies, to such part of the earnings attributable to COSRS service as, when added to the APPS earnings or the part attributable to COMPS service (or both), [F3exceeds the current lower earnings limit and] does not exceed the current upper earnings limit;

(d)the amount obtained by applying the rate of primary Class 1 contributions that would apply if all the aggregated earnings were attributable to employments which are not contracted-out to such part of the aggregated earnings as, when added to the part or parts attributable to COMPS or COSRS service, [F3exceeds the current lower earnings limit and] does not exceed the current upper earnings limit.]

(4)In relation to earners paid otherwise than weekly, any reference in sub-paragraph (2) or (3) above to the lower or upper earnings limit shall be construed as a reference to the prescribed equivalent of that limit.

(5)The power under sub-paragraph (4) above to prescribe an equivalent of a limit includes power to prescribe an amount which exceeds, by not more than £1.00, the amount which is the arithmetical equivalent of that limit.

[F4(6)The amount of the secondary Class 1 contribution shall be the aggregate of the amounts determined under the following paragraphs (applying earlier paragraphs before later ones)—

(a)if the aggregated earnings are paid to or for the benefit of an earner in respect of whom minimum contributions are payable under section 39(1) of the Pensions Act, the amount obtained by applying the rate of secondary Class 1 contributions that would apply if all the aggregated earnings were attributable to employments which are not contracted-out to [F5such part of the APPS earnings as exceeds the earnings threshold];

(b)if some of the aggregated earnings are attributable to COMPS service, the amount obtained by applying the rate of secondary Class 1 contributions that would apply if all the aggregated earnings were attributable to COMPS service to [F6such part of the aggregated earnings attributable to such service as exceeds the earnings threshold];

(c)if some of the aggregated earnings are attributable to COSRS service, the amount obtained by applying the rate of secondary Class 1 contributions that would apply if all the aggregated earnings were attributable to COSRS service to [F6such part of the aggregated earnings attributable to such service as exceeds the earnings threshold];

(d)the amount obtained by applying the rate of secondary Class 1 contributions that would apply if all the aggregated earnings were attributable to employments which are not contracted-out to [F7such part of the remainder of the aggregated earnings as exceeds the earnings threshold].]

(7)Where any single payment of earnings is made in respect of two or more employed earner’s employments under different employers, liability for Class 1 contributions shall be determined by apportioning the payment to such one or more of the employers as may be prescribed, and treating a part apportioned to any employer as a separate payment of earnings by him.

(8)Where earnings are aggregated under sub-paragraph (1)(b) above, liability (if any) for the secondary contribution shall be apportioned, in such manner as may be prescribed, between the secondary contributors concerned.

[F8(8A)Regulations under any provision of this paragraph shall be made by the Inland Revenue.]

[F9(9)In this paragraph—

  • “COMPS service” means service in employment in respect of which minimum payments are made to a money purchase contracted-out scheme;

  • “COSRS service” means service in employment which qualifies the earner for a pension provided by a salary related contracted-out scheme.]

Textual Amendments

F8Sch. 1 para. 1(8A) inserted (1.4.1999) by S.I. 1999/671, art. 4, Sch. 3 para. 30 (with savings and transitional provisions in Sch. 7); S.R. 1999/149, art. 2(c), Sch. 2 (subject to arts. 3-6)