Home Responsibilities Confusion

kindofagilr

seven-day-weekend wrote: »

Because Pension Credit is means-tested which means if your partner has an income you may not be entitled to it.

State Pension an S2P (SERPS) are not means-tested.

Yes exactly, and if you have any savings and or private pension etc then thats counted as income and you more than likely wouldn't be entitled to Pension Credit

vix2000

So if you pay your full contribution you get 95.25. If you or partner had savings and or pension, that is all you would get, but if you had no partner, savings or pension you would get a minimum of 130.00 with pension credit?

kindofagilr

I don't deal with Pension Credit so not 100% sure. But basically yes

Pension Credit is a benefit to top up pensioners who don't have enough to live of (no private pension or savings or partner etc)

If you have a full State Pension, a private pension, savings and a spouse with the same then you don't need help with a top up benefit.

Like I say I dont know the actual rates allowed, you are allowed a certain amount of savings before they will say no

kindofagilr

Pension Credit - Your entitlement.
If you or or partner are 60 or over, then you will probably qualify for Pension Credit - providing that your income is below £124.05 per week. If you have a partner, and your joint income is less than £189.35, then you should also qualify for Pension Credit.
Together with this, there is the possibility - if you are sixty five or over, that you could also get a further sum if you have 'saved' towards your retirement. This could mean as much as £19.71 for a single person and £26.13 if you are living with a partner.

Everyone over the age of 60 in the UK is entitled to Pension Credit. This is not to say that everyone over the age of 60 gets any extra money from Pension Credit!
Pension Credit simply guarantees that you will get £124.05 per week if you are a single person, and £189.35 if you are living with a partner. If you already earn that sum - either as a single person, or as having a partner, then you do not qualify for any extra money from Pension Credit. (IMPORTANT!)
The 'magic' figures again.......

• £124.05 a week guaranteed if you are a single person aged 60 yrs or over.
• £189.35 a week guaranteed if you have a partner and you are aged 60 yrs or over.

Saving Reward
Together with this, if either you or your partner are aged 65 or more, you could also gat a 'reward' if you have 'saved' for your retirement.
Providing you have saved towards your retirement, the reward could be as much as.....

• £19.71 per week if you are single person
• £26.13 per week if you have a partner

Providing you are eligible to claim pension Credit, you can get it backdated for up to three months from the date you apply. The backdating will only apply if you were entitled to Pension Credit for that three months, or part of it.
For instance, if you are now 61 yrs and you apply, then you will only be entitled to three months backdating. If you are 60 yrs and 2 months, then you will only be entitled to two months backdating. Three Months is the absolute limit. (It changed on 8th October 2008 - before then, you could get up to twelve months backdating of Pension Credits)
You can apply for Pension Credit up to four months before your sixtieth birthday, but you are not entitled to the money until you have reached 60 yrs. If your partner is under 60 when you apply, it is not a problem and does not matter.

Changes to the Age of claiming Pension Credit
Gradually, the government is going to raise the age of pension entitlement for women. From 2010 (April 6th) the age of retirement for women will increase year by year. At the same time - 6th April 2010 - the age of claiming Pension Credit will also be increased.
('Partner' means husband, wife, or civil partner, or any person you live with as though you are either married or in a civil partnership)


You can apply for Pension Credit by calling 0800 99 1234 between 8.00am and 8.00pm Mondays to Fridays - NOT weekends
Can you get Pension Credit - Your Entitlement rules
If you are rich, you will not get Pension Credit. For you to be able to get your Pension Credit entitlement - you have to be 'entitled' to that credit.
You earning are taken into account before deciding if you are entitled to Pension Credit. If you earn over a certain amount, you will not qualify for the Pension Credit Entitlement. You are only 'entitled' to Pension Credit if you meet certain earnings criteria - rules. Not everyone over 60 yrs is 'entitled' to Pension Credit. Only those who earn very little in total. The word 'entitlement' is not a good word for the government to use. Not everyone is entitled! But the thinking was probably that 'entitlement' made people good about being able to get something.
If you have 'earnings' and these will include things like ......

• Your STATE pension - or any other pension.
• Assistance Funds or Pension Protection Fund payments
• benefits such as Carer's allowance
• earnings from a job of any kind - including your earnings after tax of any self-employed work you do.

Earnings which will NOT be included in the calculation for Pension Credit include ......

• Attendance Allowance - AA
• Disability Living Allowance - DLA
• Housing Benefits
• Council Tax Benefits
• Your Savings - income, dividends and interest are not included in the calculations for earnings BUT if you have savings, then the government will count as £1 per week towards your earnings entitlement for every £500 that you have saved over and above £6,000. So, if you have savings of £6,021, then the £21 over the £6,000 ceiling will count as a £1 a week from 'earnings'. If you live permanently in a care home, then the calculations are made over £10,000. The £500 steps over the £10,000 are the same as before - £1 earnings calculated for every £500 over the £10,000.

Savings and investments that are taken into account include .....

• Money in the bank account - including building societies or post office accounts.
• Savings you or your partner have at home - by way of cash under the Pillow etc
• Premium Bonds and National Savings Certificates
• ISAs and PEPs Investments and savings.
• Any stock Market Shares or unit trusts
• Bonds of any kind
• Any Land or 'Property' you own - but not your home where you live.

That must make you feel good about the money you put away for your retirement or a rainy day! All the sales blurb about income from Premium Bonds being tax free. Basically, if you DON'T win, then you stand to lose out simply by having the Premium Bonds.
On the plus side.....

• If you live with your grown up family, YOU can still get Pension Credit. It is YOUR income that is taken into account. The rest of the family can earn what they like - it does not affect you claiming for YOUR Pension Credit.
• If you own your own home, it does not stop you from applying.
• If you are only awarded a small sum for Pension Credit, it may mean that you can get other help with such things as Council Tax Benefit and also Housing Benefit.

You should be able to claim for Pension Credit, Council Tax and Housing Benefit with the same phone call. (0800 99 1234 between 8.00am and 8.00pm Mondays to Fridays)

For those who are self-assessed tax payers, you will realise that the state pension earnings you get are actually taxable - annoying - so you will need to forecast what your net earnings are for any given tax year, and also estimate what your tax liability will be, and make sure that the Pension credit Team are aware of this. If you do this incorrectly, then you could end up facing having to pay some of your Pension Credit back.
SO ........ Over 60 - Under 65
If you are single and are over 60 - but under 65 you will probably be entitled to Pension Credit PROVIDING THAT your income is less than £124.05 each week.
If you have a partner - any age - and your weekly earnings are less than £189.35, you could be entitled to Pension Credit.
You may even be able to get more - even if you earn more than the figures above - if for instance either you or your partner are severely disabled, or have mortgage interest payments to make,
If either you or your partner are older than 65, then Pension Credit Scheme guarantees you an income of minimum .........

• Single person - £124.05 a week.
• Married or have partner £189.35 a week.

seven-day-weekend

vix2000 wrote: »

So if you pay your full contribution you get 95.25. If you or partner had savings and or pension, that is all you would get, but if you had no partner, savings or pension you would get a minimum of 130.00 with pension credit?

If you had a partner, Pension Credit wiould make your joint income up to £198. If single, £130.

If you have a partner and your joint income from all sources was more than £198 you would not be eligible for Pension Credit. Or if you were single and your total income was more than £130, you would not be eligible.

However, bear in mind that as a means-tested additional Benefit, PC can be withdrawn on any Governmen'ts will, I for one would not rely on it.

vix2000

Sorry I got the figures I used from here:-

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Pensionsandretirementplanning/PensionCredit/DG_10018692

Age 60 or over - Guarantee Credit


If you are aged 60 or over and living in Great Britain you may be entitled to the Guarantee Credit. This guarantees a minimum income by topping up your weekly income to:

• £130 if you are single
• £198.45 if you have a partner

These amounts may be more if you are disabled, have caring responsibilities or certain housing costs, such as mortgage interest payments.
While you must be at least 60 to get Pension Credit, you can still claim if your partner is under 60. If you or your partner are both over 60 either one of you can apply.
‘Partner’ is used to refer to your husband, wife or civil partner, or the person you live with as if they were your husband, wife or civil partner.
Between 6 April 2010 and 5 April 2020 the age from which you may get Pension Credit will change. It will gradually rise in line with the increase in the State Pension age for women from 60 to 65. Use the State Pension age calculator to find out more about the rise in women's State Pension age and when you can apply for Pension Credit.

edit- seven-day-weekend you beat me to it. I thought I had mis-read the figures.

seven-day-weekend

Don't forget also that the £95 a week is only BASIC State Pension. Many people 's Pension is more than this by the time S2P has been added on (Second State Pension, formerly known as SERPS) . This is an earnings-related addition, paid for through NI, which people get if they have not paid into an Occupational Scheme or not opted out.

For example, my friend's Pension is £137 a week (£95 Basic State Pension, £42 S2P).

My Pension is £102 including S2P, but because I paid for ten years into the Local Government Pension Scheme, I have another £46 a week to come from that.

(of course, if most of your entitlement has come from HRP and not working , then you won't have much, if any, additions to the £95).

HTH

vix2000

I have got my activation for the online pensions forecast but can't enter the details on the site. I have been on WTC for the last few years as I work 16hrs at minimum wage. I therefore do not pay NI. I am putting on the site that I don't pay NI and have tried entering my wages weekly, monthly and annually but it says my details are wrong. Can anyone tell me what I'm doing wrong please?