No entitlement

Application of EU law to UK National Insurance class 3 contributions

The taxpayer was born in Dublin in 1928. He now lives in Gibraltar but has also lived in the UK Kenya Australia and the Isle of Man.

The taxpayer had previously unsuccessfully claimed that he was entitled to pay National Insurance class 3 contributions for the years 1950 to 1963 after the First-tier Tribunal and Upper Tribunal found in favour of HMRC. He then claimed that he satisfied the conditions to pay class 3 contributions for the years 1963 to 1983 on the basis that EU legislation overrode the UK rules. HMRC disagreed. The First-tier Tribunal dismissed his appeal and the case proceeded to the Upper Tribunal.

The judges noted that EU legislation was intended to co-ordinate the National Insurance regimes of the member states rather than harmonise them. On the UK regime they said reg...