The Musicians’ Union Welcomes National Insurance Ruling

The Musicians’ Union (MU) welcomes the Government’s decision to repeal the current National Insurance regulations in respect of entertainers.This means that from 6 April 2014, those individuals engaged as an actor, singer, or musician, or in any similar performing capacity will pay Class 2 and Class 4 National Insurance as self employed earners. The current regulations meant that these individuals fell under Class 1.John Smith, MU General Secretary says “The MU has lobbied hard over the past year to get the Government and HMRC to change the regulations that state that self-employed musicians now fall under Class 1 National Insurance (NI) contributions.”The current situation has been hugely problematic for musicians and for those who engage musicians as a result of them having to pay employees’/employers’ NI. Film producers, who bring lucrative inward investment into the UK’s creative economy by way of recording soundtracks for films, have been expressing concern about engaging UK musicians as a result of the extra expense, and some orchestras were also under threat.”The Government’s decision to repeal these regulations is fantastic news for musicians and for the wider music industry and we are grateful that HMRC acted so swiftly on this important issue.