Alliance leader Naomi Long has said she will not be claiming expenses for her trip to see the Queen lying in state.
The Justice Minister and her husband Michael appeared to skip the miles-long queue to view the coffin inside Westminster Hall.
Some politicians such as MPs, other high-profile figures and some media were permitted to bypass the queue during the almost four days of lying in state.
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It led to some facing criticism on social media for not joining the public line, which swelled in size and at some points reached a wait time of "at least 24 hours".
Several MLAs travelled to London across several dates to view the Queen lying in state after Stormont offered to arrange and pay for their trips.
A group of DUP MLAs were seen on Thursday filtering into the front of the queue from a side entrance, while MLAs from several parties viewed the coffin the previous day before Westminster Hall was opened to members of the public.
Mr Long, a Belfast councillor, said he bypassed the queue when he and Mrs Long visited at the weekend to pay their respects.
He confirmed the access in response to a Facebook user who said: "Hope you queued with the proletariat!"
Mr Long replied: "Not for that one but we did at Buckingham Palace and I will be on Monday again to try and see the procession."
Footage online appeared to show the couple on a viewing platform in Westminster Hall used by those afforded special access, such as foreign dignitaries. They were also seen walking past the coffin.
Responding to Twitter users, Mrs Long said she was "not claiming" expenses for their trip, adding: "We claimed no expenses."
Mr Long also said he would be paying for his trip.
A statement from Alliance addressed how other party MLAs had travelled to Westminster Hall last Wednesday.
A party spokeswoman said: "On Wednesday, MLAs from the Northern Ireland Assembly were invited to join members of the Royal Family, House of Commons, House of Lords, Scottish Parliament and Welsh Assembly, along with representatives from the governments of the Commonwealth countries, at a Reception of the Coffin ceremony in Westminster Hall.
"After the ceremony, all the invitees, followed the royal family out of the Hall, past the catafalque.
"The ceremony ended at approximately 4pm. Members of the public were admitted from 5.30pm that evening to view the Queen's coffin."
In a subsequent statement, the party said Cabinet Office and Parliament officials granted access to some public representatives "for both security and representation reasons".
It said Naomi and Michael Long "made their own travel arrangements and are covering the entire cost of the trip, claiming no expenses".
Meanwhile, a DUP councillor has defended skipping the queue alongside some of his party's MLAs on Thursday.
Allan Ewart, the party's finance director, said he assumed the Assembly would pay costs for MLAs but he added: "I had to pay my own way. The Assembly didn't pay for me."
He added: "All devolved administrations got places [to skip the queue] as far as I'm aware.
"I just went along and joined the flow."
Asked how they received lanyards to access Westminster Hall, he said: "That's a stupid question."
He added: "I told you I went along with the Assembly group and we got in, and that's it."
Mr Ewart hit out at being asked about the matter, saying that "you're trying to put out a negative story".
In a fresh statement, a Stormont Assembly spokeswoman confirmed the Assembly Commission funded the travel arrangements for MLAs and accompanying commission staff.
She said it was "normal" for devolved legislatures "to support the arrangements for members when they are attending official events of this level and nature".
The Assembly declined to give a full list of which MLAs availed of the offer to arrange travel, or address how MLAs appeared to skip the queue.
Other parties were also asked whether they availed of the trips. Sinn Féin and the UUP did not respond.
An SDLP spokesman said: "SDLP MLAs declined the Assembly's offer to arrange and pay for travel to attend events related to the death of Queen Elizabeth. No SDLP representatives skipped the queue to pay respects to the Queen."
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