How to get covered
Last updated May 2026
Getting covered takes a few steps — get your number, register, pay, then check what you've built up. Here's how, all with NIS.
Get your National Insurance number
Your National Insurance number stays with you for life — from your first job to the day you retire. If you've ever worked in Barbados, you probably already have one, and your contributions from years ago still count.
If you don't know your number, NIS can find it. Call 467-4NIS (4647) or visit any NIS office. If you've never had one, you get a number when you register.
Register with NIS
You register as a self-employed person. You don't need a registered business — just yourself and your National Insurance number.
This link takes you to NIS to register. It opens in a new tab.
Already have a job that pays NIS?
If you have a main job where your employer pays National Insurance for you, that covers your job income. When you also work for yourself, you can pay extra contributions for that self-employed work — a "top-up". It adds to your cover; it doesn't replace what your employer already pays.
You register and pay for your self-employed work the same way as anyone else, using your National Insurance number.
Pay your contributions
The lowest you can pay is BDS$1,200.00 a year — about BDS$100.00 a month. You don't have to pay the same amount every time: pay more in good months and less in slow ones, weekly, monthly or in lumps — as long as you cover the year by 15 January.
You can pay:
- online with SurePay (or at a SurePay kiosk)
- online with EZpay+
- at any CIBC FirstCaribbean branch
- in person at the NIS office at Frank Walcott Building
Tip from NIS. Pay more in good months and less in lean ones. The number of contributions is what matters.
Check your benefits and your record
You can ask NIS for a record of your contributions — every payment over your working life. It's free, and you can collect it the same day in person. It shows what you've built up toward sickness, maternity, invalidity, survivors', funeral and pension cover.
To see what each of those benefits is, read Working for yourself? You can be covered.
Missed some years? It's not too late
If you used to pay and stopped, or you've never started, you can pay back up to three years you missed. NIS adds 5% for each year you're behind.
Close to retirement without enough contributions for a full pension? You may still qualify for a one-time grant. NIS can tell you what you'd get before you decide.
Need to speak to someone?
You can call NIS on 467-4NIS (4647) or visit any NIS office.
Source: National Insurance and Social Security Service (NIS), May 2026. The BDS$1,200.00 minimum, instalment and electronic payment, and back-payment of up to three years (with a 5% surcharge per year) are set in the Self-employed Persons Regulations under Act 2023-25 (including Regulation 4D).