Payments and expenses

This is a guide for lay members who we've invited to sit on one of our committees, panels, or groups.

Lay members include patients, service users, carers, lay topic experts and patient experts.

How much will I be paid?

Decision makers

Decision makers are those recruited to a committee or group making formal decisions and recommendations on behalf of NICE, such as an advisory committee meeting.

Decision makers are offered the following rates for meetings in which they have a decision making role. 

  • £300 – scheduled meetings of more than 4 hours

  • £150 – scheduled meetings up to and including 4 hours.

Lived experience contributors

Lay contributors who have been invited to a meeting to share their lived experience and testimony with NICE, but who do not take part in decision making are offered the following rates:

  • £150 – more than 4 hours

  • £75 – up to and including 4 hours.

Payment rates for ‘one off’ activities

Where lay contributors are asked to take part in a ‘one off' activity, the following rates are offered:

  • reviewing documents or training modules: £25.

How do I claim?

You can claim for expenses and the attendance fee using our online expenses system.

When you claim you'll be asked to give a 'reason code'. Use the reason code: PIPlaymemberexpenses.

How long will it take?

After you've submitted your claim, it'll be processed by the people and communities team. Your payment will be transferred into your account within 3 weeks. It'll show up on your bank statement as 'SEL' or 'Selenity'. 

If you need to claim for something, make sure you get an invoice or receipt and keep hold of it - you'll need to submit it when you make a claim.

What can I claim for?

Travel to and from meetings

We encourage people to use public transport to get to our meetings, as this is better for the environment.

We will:

  • contact you before the meeting to arrange transport that meets your needs

  • book and pay for your tickets.

If you're unable to travel on public transport because of special circumstances, we can talk about other options with you. 

Accommodation

Some of our meetings run for more than one day, or start in the morning. Because of this, depending on where you live, you may need overnight accommodation.

We'll book and pay for suitable accommodation for those who need it. Before we do this, we'll contact you to find out if you have any special requirements. 

Food and drink

You can claim an allowance for food and drink - we call this 'subsistence'. There are different amounts you can claim for, depending on how long you are away from home. 

You can find out more about this in our non-staff reimbursement policy (Word).

Special requirements

We'll cover the costs of certain special requirements. This could include:

  • hiring a British sign-language interpreter to attend meetings with you

  • hiring a support worker to help you take part in the meeting if you have a learning disability.

If you have a special requirement, you can contact us to chat about your needs further. 

Carers, support worker and childcare expenses

We recognise that in some circumstances individuals will need to arrange for carers or support workers to accompany them to a meeting, or to take over unpaid caring responsibilities while they are at a meeting. This includes childcare or care of a family member with a disability or other additional needs.

NICE will meet the reasonable costs incurred by individuals for employing a carer or support worker. There is no set rate, as we understand that this can vary significantly depending on the type of care and/or support needed.

NICE will make a flat-rate contribution of £25 for out of pocket expenses, claimed via the online expenses system, to people with caring responsibilities who are inconvenienced in some way but do not use a registered agency (for example, people who use the services of a family member or friend).

Equipment

If you need additional equipment to fully participate in virtual meetings, speak to the staff running your committee. You can claim for equipment up to the value of £50, providing you have staff approval before you make the purchase.

Tax

The payments do not mean you have a contract of employment with NICE or one of our partner organisations. HMRC have confirmed that lay contributors are self-employed for tax purposes for the involvement payments outlined in this policy. The individual will be responsible for reporting all payments to HMRC for income tax and NI purposes.

Considerations for people in receipt of state benefits

As payments for involvement are classified as income for state benefit calculations, people in receipt of state benefits may choose not to claim them or chose to claim a lower amount. Different rules about earnings apply to different types of benefits. Individuals in receipt of state benefits are advised to liaise with relevant agencies, such as the Department for Work and Pensions or their local Jobcentre Plus.

Contact us

Still can't find what you're looking for? Contact our Public Involvement Programme, who will be more than happy to help you. 

Email: [email protected].

Telephone: 0161 870 3020.