Class 4 National Insurance: UK self-employed 2026/27

By UK Tax Drag · Reviewed 19 September 2026

What you need to know: Class 4 NI for UK self-employed - 2026/27

Quick answer: UK Class 4 NI 2026/27 rates: 6% on annual profits between £12,570 and £50,270; 2% on profits above £50,270. Compulsory Class 2 NI ended from 6 April 2024 - self-employed people with profits of £7,105 or more (the 2026/27 Small Profits Threshold) are treated as having paid it, so the year still…

Key points:

Compulsory Class 2 NI ended: no self-employed person has to pay it, whatever their profits.
With profits at or above the Small Profits Threshold (£7,105 in 2026/27), Class 2 is treated as having been paid, so the year still counts towards the State Pension without a bill.
Voluntary Class 2 (£3.65/week in 2026/27) remains available below the Small Profits Threshold for people who want the year to count.

UK Class 4 NI 2026/27 rates: 6% on annual profits between £12,570 and £50,270; 2% on profits above £50,270. Compulsory Class 2 NI ended from 6 April 2024 - self-employed people with profits of £7,105 or more (the 2026/27 Small Profits Threshold) are treated as having paid it, so the year still counts towards the State Pension. Self-employed people with profits below £7,105 can choose to pay voluntary Class 2 (£3.65/week in 2026/27) to protect their record. Class 4 NI is calculated and paid via Self Assessment - no separate process.

The Class 4 NI rate structure

Class 4 NI rate by profit band - 2026/27

How compulsory Class 2 NI ended

What changed for the self-employed from 6 April 2024:

Compulsory Class 2 NI ended: no self-employed person has to pay it, whatever their profits.
With profits at or above the Small Profits Threshold (£7,105 in 2026/27), Class 2 is treated as having been paid, so the year still counts towards the State Pension without a bill.
Voluntary Class 2 (£3.65/week in 2026/27) remains available below the Small Profits Threshold for people who want the year to count.
The Class 4 NI main rate was cut from 9% to 6% (no change to the 2% rate above £50,270).

Until 5 April 2024, self-employed people with profits above the Lower Profits Limit (£12,570 in 2023/24) paid two separate NI charges:

Class 2 NI until 5 April 2024: £3.45/week flat rate in 2023/24 (£179.40/year). Provided State Pension qualifying year and contributory benefit access.
Class 4 NI until 5 April 2024: 9% on profits £12,570-£50,270, 2% above. (Note: 9% was reduced to 6% from April 2024.)

Since April 2022, people with profits from the Small Profits Threshold (£6,725 in 2023/24) up to the Lower Profits Limit had paid no Class 2 but were treated as having paid it.

Net effect for typical self-employedComparing the 2024/25 rules with 2023/24, a £30,000-profit sole trader saved £179.40 (52 weeks of Class 2 at £3.45, no longer payable) + £522.90 (3% of the £17,430 of profit above £12,570, because the Class 4 main rate fell from 9% to 6% on 6 April 2024) = about £702 a year. The Class 4 saving grows with profit up to £50,270, where it peaks at £1,131 (3% of £37,700); the 2% rate above that did not change.

Worked Class 4 NI maths

Profit £30,000

Profit subject to Class 4: £30,000 - £12,570 = £17,430
All in 6% band
Class 4 NI: £17,430 × 6% = £1,046

Profit £60,000

In 6% band: £50,270 - £12,570 = £37,700 × 6% = £2,262
In 2% band: £60,000 - £50,270 = £9,730 × 2% = £195
Class 4 NI total: £2,457

Profit £100,000

In 6% band: £37,700 × 6% = £2,262
In 2% band: £100,000 - £50,270 = £49,730 × 2% = £995
Class 4 NI total: £3,257

Class 4 vs employee Class 1 - the comparison

Earnings band	Employee Class 1 NI	Self-employed Class 4 NI	SE saving vs employed
£0-£12,570	0%	0%	0%
£12,571-£50,270	8%	6%	2 percentage points
£50,271+	2%	2%	0%

In the main band the self-employed pay NI at a rate 2 percentage points lower than employees (6% rather than 8%). They also have access to fewer work-related payments: Statutory Sick Pay and Statutory Maternity Pay are for employees only (a self-employed person may be able to claim Maternity Allowance instead), and no employer NI is paid on their earnings.

Don’t forget Employer NIWhen comparing self-employed to employed total tax cost, factor in 15% Employer NI (the 2026/27 rate, unchanged since 6 April 2025) that the employer pays - it’s notionally the cost of employing someone. Self-employed pay no Employer NI. The "true" cost difference between employment and self-employment is wider than the 2 percentage point Class 1 vs Class 4 gap suggests.

State Pension qualification for self-employed

From April 2024, self-employed profits at or above the Small Profits Threshold (£7,105 in 2026/27) give you a State Pension qualifying year because Class 2 is treated as having been paid. Before April 2024, people with profits above the Lower Profits Limit had to pay Class 2 to get the year; since April 2022, profits from the Small Profits Threshold up to that limit have counted without a bill.

Profit level (2026/27)	State Pension qualification
Above £12,570 (Lower Profits Limit)	Qualifying year - Class 2 treated as paid (Class 4 NI is also due)
£7,105-£12,570 (Small Profits Threshold to LPL)	Qualifying year - Class 2 treated as paid, nothing to pay
Below £7,105	Optional - pay voluntary Class 2 (£189.80/year) for State Pension credit
Zero or loss-making	Voluntary Class 2 (£189.80/year) can be paid if you have no other route to a qualifying year

You usually need 35 qualifying years for the full new State Pension (£241.30/week or £12,547.60/year in 2026/27).

Common Class 4 NI mistakes

Mistake 1: Forgetting voluntary Class 2 below the threshold.If your self-employment profit is under £7,105 (2026/27) and you have no other NI credits (no employment, no Child Benefit registration as carer), you lose a State Pension qualifying year unless you pay voluntary Class 2 (£189.80/year). 35 years are needed for full State Pension - missing years is expensive long-term.

Mistake 2: Believing the £7,105-£12,570 band needs Class 2.Since April 2022, profits in this band are treated as having paid Class 2, so the year counts for State Pension without payment. No Class 2 required.

Mistake 3: Trying to "save" on Class 4 NI by maximising pension contributions.Pension contributions don’t reduce Class 4 NI - they reduce income tax. Class 4 NI is calculated on profit, not on taxable income after pension relief. So pension salary sacrifice savings (which save NI for employees) don’t apply to self-employed Class 4.

Mistake 4: Confusing Class 4 with Class 1A or Class 3.Class 1A is employer NI on benefits-in-kind. Class 3 is voluntary NI to fill State Pension gaps (different from voluntary Class 2 for low-profit self-employed). These are separate systems - don’t conflate.

Class 4 NI FAQs

What is Class 4 NI in 2026/27?

Class 4 National Insurance is the main NI charge for UK self-employed people: 6% on annual profits between £12,570 and £50,270, and 2% on profits above £50,270. It is collected through Self Assessment alongside income tax. The main rate was cut from 9% to 6% from 6 April 2024. Class 4 does not count towards the State Pension or other contributory benefits.

Did Class 2 NI end in April 2024?

Compulsory Class 2 ended from 6 April 2024, but Class 2 itself still exists. With profits of £7,105 or more (the 2026/27 Small Profits Threshold) you do not pay Class 2 NI: it is treated as having been paid, so the year still counts towards the State Pension. If your profits are below £7,105 you do not have to pay anything, but you can choose to pay voluntary Class 2 NI (£3.65 a week in 2026/27) to protect your National Insurance record.

Do pension contributions reduce Class 4 NI?

No. Personal pension contributions reduce the income tax on your self-employed profit but do not reduce Class 4 NI, which is worked out on profit before pension contributions. This is a key difference from employment: an employee who pays into a pension through salary sacrifice saves both income tax and NI, while a self-employed person’s pension contribution saves income tax only.

Calculate your full self-employed tax

The sole trader tax calculator works out income tax and Class 4 NI on your profit in one combined view. It does not work out payments on account.

Open the sole trader calculator

Sources and references

Class 4 NI rates from gov.uk Class 4 NI. The end of compulsory Class 2 from 6 April 2024 from HMRC National Insurance Manual NIM70001. State Pension qualifying years from gov.uk State Pension qualifying years.

UK Tax Drag is educational and not regulated financial, tax, legal or business advice - see the disclaimer for the full position. Always verify current rates and rules at the original government sources before acting.

Other self-employed deep guides

Editorial accountability

Open Trust Centre →

Every page is reviewed against the editorial standards, written from primary sources and sourced openly, with corrections listed in the changelog. No affiliate revenue. No sponsored content. No paid placements.

Editorial standards Editorial process Corrections policy How we make money The Editor Methodology

UK Tax Drag is an independent publication by Finsolve Consulting Limited, not affiliated with or endorsed by HMRC, GOV.UK or any government body.