The Social Security (Contributions) Regulations 2001

Precluded Class 3 contributions U.K.

49.—(1) Subject to paragraph (2), no person shall be entitled to pay a Class 3 contribution—

(a) in respect of any year if he would, but for the payment of such a contribution, be entitled to be credited with a contribution;

(b) in respect of any year in which the aggregate of his earnings factors derived from earnings in respect of which [F1 primary Class 1 contributions, payable at the main primary percentage,] have been paid, credited earnings, or Class 2 or Class 3 contributions paid or credited is less than 25 times the lower earnings limit and either the period has passed within which any Class 3 contributions may be treated as paid for that year under regulation 4 of the Social Security (Crediting and Treatment of Contributions, and National Insurance Numbers) Regulations 2001 F2 or he has sooner, in accordance with regulation 56, applied for the return of any Class 3 contributions paid in respect of that year;

(c) in respect of any year if the aggregate of his earnings factors derived from earnings in respect of which [F1 primary Class 1 contributions, payable at the main primary percentage,] have been paid, credited earnings, or Class 2 or Class 3 contributions paid or credited is more than 25 times the lower earnings limit but less than the qualifying earnings factor and either—

(i) the period referred to in sub-paragraph (b) has passed, or

(ii) he has sooner applied under regulation 56 for the return of any Class 3 contributions paid in respect of that year;

(d) in respect of any year if it causes the aggregate of his earnings factors derived from earnings in respect of which [F1 primary Class 1 contributions, payable at the main primary percentage,] have been paid, credited earnings, or Class 2 or Class 3 contributions paid or credited to exceed the qualifying earnings factor by an amount which is half or more than half that year’s lower earnings limit;

F3 (e) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(f) in respect of the year in which he attains 17 or 18 years of age if in an earlier year he has satisfied the first contribution condition for retirement pension or widow’s pension or widowed mother’s allowance.

[F4 Sub-paragraphs (a), (b) and (c) are subject to the following qualification.]

(2) F5 ... A person shall be entitled to pay a Class 3 contribution in respect of any year if it would enable him to satisfy—

(a) the first contribution condition for retirement pension [F6 widowed mother’s allowance, widowed parent’s allowance, bereavement allowance or widow’s pension] and he has not satisfied that condition at the beginning of that year; or

(b) the contribution condition for [F7 bereavement payment or] widow’s payment and he has not satisfied that condition at the beginning of that year.

[F8 (2A) No person shall be entitled to pay a Class 3 contribution in respect of the year in which he attains pensionable age or any subsequent year.

This is subject to the following qualification.

(2B) A person—

(a) who has attained the age of 60;

(b) to whom a full gender recognition certificate is issued; and

(c) whose acquired gender is male;

is not precluded from paying Class 3 contributions for the relevant years.

(2C) For the purposes of paragraph (2B) the relevant years are—

(a) the year in which the person attains the age of 60;

(b) any subsequent year before that in which the full gender recognition certificate is issued; and

(c) the year in which the full gender recognition certificate is issued.]

(3) In this regulation “credited” means credited for the purposes of retirement pension, [F9 a state pension under section 2 or 4 of the Pensions Act 2014], widowed mother’s allowance[F10 , widowed parent’s allowance, bereavement allowance] and widow’s pension.

Textual Amendments

F1 Words in reg. 49(1) substituted (with effect in accordance with reg. 1(1) of the amending S.I.) by The Social Security (Contributions) (Amendment) Regulations 2003 (S.I. 2003/193), regs. 1(1), 7

F2 S.I. 2001/769.

F3 Reg. 49(1)(e) omitted (6.4.2005) by virtue of The Social Security (Contributions) (Amendment No. 3) Regulations 2005 (S.I. 2005/778), regs. 1(1), 6(2)

F4 Words in reg. 49(1) added (12.12.2001) by Social Security (Contributions) (Amendment No. 6) Regulations 2001 (S.I. 2001/3728), regs. 1, 2(2)

F5 Words in reg. 49(2) omitted (12.12.2001) by virtue of Social Security (Contributions) (Amendment No. 6) Regulations 2001 (S.I. 2001/3728), regs. 1, 2(3)(a)

F6 Words in reg. 49(2)(a) substituted (12.12.2001) by Social Security (Contributions) (Amendment No. 6) Regulations 2001 (S.I. 2001/3728), regs. 1, 2(3)(b)

F7 Words in reg. 49(2)(b) inserted (12.12.2001) by Social Security (Contributions) (Amendment No. 6) Regulations 2001 (S.I. 2001/3728), regs. 1, 2(3)(c)

F8 Reg. 49(2A)-(2C) inserted (6.4.2005) by The Social Security (Contributions) (Amendment No. 3) Regulations 2005 (S.I. 2005/778), regs. 1(1), 6(3)

F9 Words in reg. 49(3) inserted (coming into force in accordance with art. 1(2)(b) of the amending S.I.) by The Pensions Act 2014 (Consequential, Supplementary and Incidental Amendments) Order 2015 (S.I. 2015/1985), arts. 1(2)(b), 21(3)

F10 Words in reg. 49(3) inserted (12.12.2001) by Social Security (Contributions) (Amendment No. 6) Regulations 2001 (S.I. 2001/3728), regs. 1, 2(4)