Class 2 or 3 for early semi-retired

Just wondering about S-class stamps for PRSI and the effect on the UK voluntary contributions. Would these be UK class 2 or class 3 going forward?

• If someone pays S-class stamp over €5000 due to part-time self-employment?
• If they pay S-class stamp for PRSI due to investment/property income over €5000 (no employment/self-employment)?
• If they pay S-class stamp due to ARF drawdown of over €5000 (no employment/self-employment)?
• If they pay S-class stamp due to a combination of some of these totalling over €5000, but less than €5000 each?

Thanks in advance to the hive-mind! Regardless of the answer my retirement is looking so much better than it was before I found this site - thanks in particular to @DannyBoyD!

Just bumping this as I haven't had any response and need to plan my retirement strategy! To be clear, I wasn't expecting any one person to know the answers to 'all' of these, but if those who are in one or another category could share what the outcome was for them, that would be very helpful. All the discussion on this forum seems to be about people in employment ie 'A-class'. Thanks in advance.

I have followed this topic for some time and I'm by no means an expert but I'm not sure I've seen this particular point ever addressed on a post here or on the HMRC/ DSP websites.

The closest statement I can recall that may help put your mind at rest is that once you've been accepted into the system to back pay NICs, and once you have paid up to the current UK tax year, you will get an annual NIC demand based on the class you had been paying up to that point. That approach perhaps assumes that people eligible to pay class 2 as they were working would continue to pay at class 2 without further questions or checks by the UK authorities that may reveal that they are now semi or fully retired, unemployed, etc.

Thanks @Kev1964. That is very helpful to know. Following on from that - has anyone here been told to change class after starting annual payments? Or has anyone asked HMRC of they were supposed to change and got an answer?

Maybe it’s a bit of don’t ask a question the answer to which you might not like.