National Insurance Contributions Query

Alice_Holt

Would PIP be a possibility?
Does your partner have care needs?
It's not means tested, and doesn't rely on NI contributions.
https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/benefits/sick-or-disabled-people-and-carers/pip/before-claiming/check-you-are-eligible/

May be worth your partner speaking to Macmillan.
http://www.macmillan.org.uk/information-and-support/organising/money-worries/index.html?origin=HP-2017
They may have a welfare benefits adviser in your area who could advise on the likelihood of PIP eligibility.

Darksparkle

Where have you got that information regarding WTC? It isn't correct.

WTC is based on the joint household income. If your joint income is less than £18,000 then you can claim WTC as a couple.

However as I posted before, she's have only got NI credits from WTC if she had a small earnings exception (which is for the self employed, not the employed) and it would have been class 3 credits, not class 1.

NeilCr

Not sure about your information on carers allowance either

It's about the salary you earn not the hours you work

https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/benefits/sick-or-disabled-people-and-carers/benefits-for-people-who-are-sick-or-disabled/#benefits_for_carers

I do get that if you are working 30 hours you are unlikely to qualify but it may help you with planning for the future

partypopper

This discussion has re enforced, yet again, to me that the poor who make effort to accept part time or low earning jobs seem to be worse off than those who do not work ( except for those that cant work- eg carers- dont get me started on the pittance that carers live on). For instance low earning families might get some tax credits but they miss out on free school meals and pupil premiums which the unemployed get.
My husband earns 13,000 and I have not had a job for the last 7 years. We get working tax credit and child tax credit for my daughter who is now age 16. I have always understood that because my husband works, after having my contribution based JSA for 6 months, I would never be able to claim income based JSA.
I always knew that when one person in a couple works, the other person has to live off them, which to me is wrong because there ought to be incentives for couples to live together. (my husband could have got the same benefits over the years and maybe even more, if I was not living with him- so unfair) nevertheless I have always accepted that I would get no JSA whether or not I look for work, while my husband works full time. However what I did not know was that I would be missing out on national insurance contributions for the last 5 years for my pension. I have not worked since my daughter turned age 11 and back then when I enquired about national insurance credits, i was told that I would be credited until she turns 16 and that I needed 30 years of credits for a full pension.
The rules have changed. still no JSA money as expected but I was shocked to find out that another 5 years are needed for the full pension - change from 30 years to 35 years needed for a full pension plus I am missing credits for another 5 years because credits stopped as soon as my child turned 12. Thats 10 unexpected years that I am missing from my pension. It just shows how we have to keep up with the rules and thank goodness these forums are here for us to share news and help each other.

Years ago, i was also told that families on WTC also get credits for national insurance contributions and recently some people including one from HMRC said that too but I think she was wrong Can anyone confirm if WTC does help anyone to get NI credits.?
Also , You may wonder why I havent worked, well I have cared for my parents whom have up and down illnesses which havent qualified them for middle rate DLA ( so no carers allowance money) my mum has only a pension of about £76 and no benefits whereas my dad has lower rate DLA and state pension which he shares with mum.I have never taken a penny off them to care for them because they struggle to make ends meet too. comments welcome .

Dazed_and_confused

Have you applied for Marriage Allowance?

If you have insufficient income to use your tax allowance your husband may get a tax reduction if you apply.

Note:. You, as the lower earner must apply NOT your husband

p00hsticks

partypopper wrote: »

T
The rules have changed. still no JSA money as expected but I was shocked to find out that another 5 years are needed for the full pension - change from 30 years to 35 years needed for a full pension plus I am missing credits for another 5 years because credits stopped as soon as my child turned 12. Thats 10 unexpected years that I am missing from my pension. It just shows how we have to keep up with the rules and thank goodness these forums are here for us to share news and help each other.
.

Have you got a pension forecast ?
https://www.gov.uk/check-state-pension

There are transitional rules in place which means that you will get at least as much as you were entitled to under the old rules creditted as your 'starting amount' calculated as at 6/4/16. If this amount is less than £155.65 then you have the opportunity to earn or buy additional NI years from 2016-17 onwards to increase your weekly pension by £4.45 a week for each year up to that maximum amount

So the change in pension rules has not lost you anything, and has possibly given you an option to increase your pension further.

fablanta

p00hsticks wrote: »

Have you got a pension forecast ?
https://www.gov.uk/check-state-pension

There are transitional rules in place which means that you will get at least as much as you were entitled to under the old rules creditted as your 'starting amount' calculated as at 6/4/16. If this amount is less than £155.65 then you have the opportunity to earn or buy additional NI years from 2016-17 onwards to increase your weekly pension by £4.45 a week for each year up to that maximum amount

So the change in pension rules has not lost you anything, and has possibly given you an option to increase your pension further.

I too was shocked to find out in a casual remark by Martin in his ITV Money Show that the requirement had gone up from 30 to 35 years (in 2016). When I checked online I found that I had a shortfall of 7 years (on top of the 31 I had already put in). Under the old rules I would have been entitled to a MAXIMUM (contracted out) pension. but the rule change sees my weekly (projected) pension reduced by £30.51 (19.1%) off the max.

While I can get by on my current income I do not have the thousands of pounds it would cost to buy back the deficit. So, after a gap of 7 years when I counted myself as retired, I now have to go back to signing on (for £ZERO) and looking for work for at least the next 6.85 years to top up my weekly pension by the rate of 9p per week, that's if the rules don't change again (instead of the extra 4 years I would have needed if I just continued). So, from my point of view, I have lost out.

p00hsticks

fablanta wrote: »

I too was shocked to find out in a casual remark by Martin in his ITV Money Show that the requirement had gone up from 30 to 35 years (in 2016).

Bear in mind that prior to 2010, the requirement for a full state pension was 44 years for a man and 39 years for a woman. So it was only set at 30 years for a relatively short period of time.

fablanta wrote: »

When I checked online I found that I had a shortfall of 7 years (on top of the 31 I had already put in). Under the old rules I would have been entitled to a MAXIMUM (contracted out) pension. but the rule change sees my weekly (projected) pension reduced by £30.51 (19.1%) off the max.

It may be £30.51 off the new maximum, but that maximum is around £40 more than the 'basic' pension you would have got under the old rules (assuming you have spent your whole working life so far contracted out). So you have not lost anything, and in fact stand to gain as you have an possible opportunity to increase your state pension to the new maximum - considerably more than you would have been expecting under the old system - by working, getting creditted with or buying additional years

xylophone

You are getting no less than the amount to which you were entitled under the old rules.

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/447195/new-state-pension--effect-of-being-contracted-out.pdf

but for BSP read £119.30 and for NSP £155.65

https://www.royallondon.com/Global/documents/GoodWithYourMoney/TOPPING-UP-YOUR-STATE-PENSION-GUIDE.pdf

fablanta

xylophone wrote: »

You are getting no less than the amount to which you were entitled under the old rules.

As the old rules are no longer applicable, that means nothing to me. As far as I was concerned, after I was made redundant and my local government pension scheme (LGPS) paid me out early, I had retired and, as I had contributed for more than enough years to qualify for one, I was due a FULL pension when I reached retirement age:

• I had worked for 31 years (at the same place) of a maximum qualifying period of 30 year.
• My LGPS paid me enough so that I was not entitled to JSA or any other financial benefits.
• (reading between the lines) the job centre rightly prioritized employment for younger people so there was nothing they could do for me.

The job centre agreed that there was no practical reason for me to keep singing on (apart from maybe reduced price tickets at some places), so I signed off.