Measures in NICs bill to be delayed by one year
03 November 2017
The abolition of class 2 National Insurance contributions (NICs), reforms to the NICs treatment of termination payments, and changes to the NICs treatment of sporting testimonials will now take effect from April 2019, one year later than originally planned.
The exchequer secretary to the treasury, Andrew Jones, announced that the government will introduce the NICs Bill in 2018. The measures it will implement will now take effect one year later, from April 2019. This includes the abolition of class 2 NICs, reforms to the NICs treatment of termination payments, and changes to the NICs treatment of sporting testimonials.
The exchequer secretary also said that the decision to implement a one-year delay is to allow time to engage with interested parties and parliamentarians with concerns relating to the impact of the abolition of class 2 NICs on self-employed individuals with low profits. The government has committed to abolishing class 2 NICs to simplify the system, so it is therefore right to take the time to ensure that there are no unintended consequences for the lowest paid.