Protecting and Improving Your National Insurance Record
To get the full New State Pension you need to have accumulated 35 years of National Insurance contributions by the time you reach pension age.
You need a minimum of 10 years-worth of contributions to be entitled to receive any State Pension, with 1/35 of the full amount paid for every full year you contributed.
Most people make their contributions through the PAYE system when they are paid by an employer, while self-employed workers pay through self-assessment. To pay NI contributions automatically, you need to earn above certain thresholds. You can find out more about those thresholds here:
Being out of work or on low income does not necessarily mean you will miss out making contributions. You can receive National Insurance credits when you are in receipt of certain state benefits, as well as in other circumstances, for example if you are looking after young children.
However, if you’re out of work or on a low income, and you are not receiving state benefits, you might find you have gaps in your record. In this case, you have two main options to make sure you’re eligible for full State Pension when you reach pension age.
Option 1: Buy Additional Years to Top-Up Your Record
You can top-up your National Insurance record with Class 3 contributions up to 6 years after the end of the tax year you wish to top-up. The current cost to top up your record is £15.85 per week. So, if you were 3 weeks short of making a full year’s worth of contributions, it would cost £47.55 to complete the year.
If you’re self-employed but do not reach the threshold to automatically pay Class 2 contributions, you can pay Class 2 contributions voluntarily. This is normally a better option to paying class 3 contributions, as they are much cheaper (currently £3.15 per week).
You can check which years are missing and find out how much it would cost to top up to a full year by setting up and logging into a Personal Tax Account.
Option 2: Check if you are eligible for NI Credits
Most State Benefits entitle you to be credited with National Insurance credits. If you’re awarded the benefit and receive payments, the National Insurance credits should be applied automatically. With some benefits, even if you’re not eligible to receive any money, you could receive the National Insurance credit if you meet the basic eligibility conditions.
If you’re a job seeker but can’t claim new-style Job Seeker’s Allowance — normally because you haven’t worked enough, or were previously self-employed — you can still get National Insurance credits by registering as a job seeker and contacting your local Jobcentre to ask for Class 1 credits to be awarded.
If you have Limited Capability for Work but cannot receive Employment and Support Allowance, you can be credited with Class 1 credits as long as you meet the basic conditions of eligibility. This normally happens where you are out of work but don’t have enough National Insurance Contributions over the last 2 years to be eligible for new-style or contributions-based ESA, or where you were previously claiming income-based ESA, but this stopped because your partner’s earnings were too high.
Carers Credits are for people who look after a person in receipt of certain disability benefits but who do not provide care for enough hours to meet the threshold to be eligible for Carers Allowance. You need to provide 20 hours of care per week to get Carer Credits, rather than the 35 hours required for Carers Allowance.
For a full list of the situations where NI Credits can be made, including the credits you will receive while claiming State Benefits, follow the link below.
Should I Top Up My Record?
You might want to speak to an adviser before deciding what to do. In some cases, especially when you are close to retirement, it might not be worth topping up your National Insurance record because it would reduce your entitlement to Pension Credit, which is a passport to other benefits such as the Warm Home Discount.
If you already have 35 years’ worth of contributions, topping up your National Insurance record will have no impact on your pension.
If you’re approaching retirement age, contact the Future Pensions Centre on 0800 731 0175 and ask for a forecast of your State Pension. Alternatively, you can create a Personal Tax Account and see your full National Insurance record, along with the cost to top up additional years, by following the link below:
Once you have a forecast or a copy of your National Insurance record, you can contact a Citizens Advice adviser and request a call back by completing the form here:
An adviser can help you consider your options, discuss the advantages and disadvantages of topping up your pension, as well as discuss other benefits you may be entitled to.
We can also ask questions to work out whether there are credits missing from your record and what to do if you think there are gaps when you should have been credited.
Disclaimer: This information was correct at the time of publishing on 21 September 2022 and is provided as a guide only. It is not a recommendation to take a specific action and we suggest you speak to an adviser if you have any doubt about how this information applies to you.
