Class 1 Earnings Limits and Threshold, and Class 2, Class 3 and Class 4 Limits and Contributions

 

		2006-2007	2007-2008
Class 1	Lower earnings limit Earnings threshold Upper earnings limit	£84 p.w. £97 p.w. £645 p.w.	£87 p.w. £100 p.w. £670 p.w.
Class 2	Flat rate contribution Small earnings exception limit	£2.10 p.w. £4,465 p.a.	£2.20 p.w. £4,635 p.a.
Class 3	Flat rate voluntary contribution	£7.55 p.w.	£7.80 p.w.
Class 4	Lower profits limit Upper profits limit Contribution rate plus on profits over upper profits limit	£5,035 p.a. £33,540 p.a. 8% 1%	£5,225 p.a. £34,840 p.a. 8% 1%

 

Standard Rates of Class I Contributions for 2007-2008

Primary contribution (employer)		Secondary contribution (employee)
Not contracted-out rate	Contracted-out rate	Weekly earnings	Not contracted-out rate	Contracted-out rate
				COSR	COMP
Nil on the first £100 p.w. THEN 11% on earnings up to £670 p.w. PLUS 1% thereafter	Nil on the first £100 p.w. THEN 9.4% on earnings up to £670 p.w. PLUS 1% thereafter	Up to £100.00 THEN from £100.01 without upper limit	Nil 12.8%	Nil 9.1%	Nil 11.4%

No Class I contributions are payable by or for those whose earnings do not exceed £100 p.w. In the two right-hand columns COSR relates to Salary Related Schemes and COMP to Money Purchase Schemes. The Reduced Rate for married women and widow optants is 4.85% of earnings above £100 p.w. and up to £670 p.w., plus 1% on earnings which exceed that amount.

With effect from 2003-04 there has been no effective earnings limit and thus no maximum contribution.