The Social Security (Contributions) Regulations 2001

Recovery of earnings-related contributions or Class 1B contributions

16.—(1) The Income Tax Acts and any regulations under section 203 of the Taxes Act (pay as you earn)(1) relating to the recovery of tax shall apply to the recovery of—

(a) any amount of earnings-related contributions which an employer is liable to pay the Collector for any income tax period in accordance with paragraph 10 or 11 or which he is treated as liable to the Collector for any income tax period under paragraph 15; or

(b) any amount of Class 1B contributions which an employer is liable to pay to the Collector in respect of any year in accordance with paragraph 13(1),

as if each of those amounts had been charged to tax by way of an assessment on the employer under Schedule E.

(2) Sub-paragraph (1) is subject to the qualification that, in the application to any proceedings taken, by virtue of this paragraph, of any of the relevant provisions limiting the amount which is recoverable in those proceedings, there shall be disregarded any amount of tax which may, by virtue of sub-paragraphs (3) to (5), be included as part of the cause of action or matter of complaint in those proceedings.

(3) Proceedings may be brought for the recovery of the total amount of—

(a) earnings-related contributions which the employer is liable to pay to the Collector for any income tax period;

(b) Class 1B contributions which the employer is liable to pay to the Collector in respect of any year;

(c) a combination of those classes of contributions as specified in heads (a) and (b); or

(d) any of the contributions as specified in heads (a), (b), or (c) in addition to any tax which the employer is liable to pay to the Collector for any income tax period,

without specifying the respective amount of those contributions and of tax, or distinguishing the amounts which the employer is liable to pay in respect of each employee and without specifying the employees in question.

(4) For the purposes of—

(a) proceedings under section 66 of the Taxes Management Act 1970(2) (including proceedings under that section as applied by the provisions of this paragraph);

(b) summary proceedings (including in Scotland proceedings in the sheriff court or in the sheriff’s small debt court),

the total amount of contributions, in addition to any tax which the employer is liable to pay to the Collector for any income tax period, referred to in sub-paragraph (3) shall, subject to sub-paragraph (2), be one cause of action or one matter of complaint.

(5) Nothing in sub-paragraph (3) or (4) shall prevent the bringing of separate proceedings for the recovery of each of the several amounts of—

(a) earnings-related contributions which the employer is liable to pay for any income tax period in respect of each of his several employees;

(b) Class 1B contributions which the employer is liable to pay in respect of any year in respect of each of his several employees; or

(c) tax which the employer is liable to pay for any income tax period in respect of each of his several employees.

(1)

Section 203 was amended by section 128 of, and paragraph 4 of Schedule 3 to, the Finance Act 1988 (c. 39), section 45(3) of the Finance Act 1989 (c. 26), paragraph 38 of Part II of Schedule 19 and item (23) of Part V of Schedule 26 to, the Finance Act 1994 (c. 9) and section 119 of the Finance Act 1998 (c. 36).

(2)

1970 c. 9. Section 66 was amended by Part II of the Schedule 1 to the County Courts (Northern Ireland) Order 1980 (S.I. 1980/397 (N.I. 3)), section 57(2) of the Finance Act 1984 (c. 43) and the Schedule to the High Court and County Courts Jurisdiction Order 1991 (S.I. 1991/724).