Check your state pension

Dazed_and_confused

Not so sure you've understood that correctly.

If she didn't work/contribute any further NI then what would she get?

Could it be that (if earning enough) she has to contribute for another 6 years but there is no benefit for State Pension purposes in doing so?

Towser

Whitterbod wrote: »

just checked mine
forecast for April 2018 is £144.92 and April 2033 is £164.35 . with a cope estimate of £62.37 no gaps as i was opted out in the past glad i got a worlk place pension

What amount should the COPE amount be? Mine is only £6.47:eek:

badmemory

COPE is a notional amount that you should receive (as a minimum) from the contracted out pension you paid into whilst paying reduced NI contributions, financed by those NI reduction payments.

Triumph13

point5clue wrote: »

... it would have been 28 years in 2016 - is that enough to already have enough?

In your particular circumstances, yes it is. You weren't contracted out of the earnings-related second part of the old state pension scheme. In those 28 years you didn't earn enough for the whole basic state pension, but when the second state pension you'd earned was added in you had a combined figure that was more than the new single tier pension amount.
I'm afraid you are one of the losers from the 2016 changes. If they hadn't happened, you would have earned another 2 years worth of basic pension plus a slab more of S2P and ended up with a pension even higher than your £174 pw. The new rules say that if you are already above the single tier level then you can't accrue any more.

Tom99

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]The state pension forecast amount will assume you continue to pay NI if that will increase the amount you have currently earned. Ie the forecast is not necessarily what you already have in the bag.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]The info will then go on to say how much you have earned to April 2017 and whether you need to continue to contribute to reach that forecast.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Also it will go on to say whether paying for past missing year can increase your forecast or alternatively '£xyz is the most you can get'[/FONT]

GunJack

I'm still struggling to understand how this is confusing people...the way it's presented on the .GOV site is very clear and straightforward even for a non-pensions-expert (like me)...

I think people should also understand by now that NI is for more than just state pension....

point5clue

Triumph13 wrote: »

In your particular circumstances, yes it is. You weren't contracted out of the earnings-related second part of the old state pension scheme. In those 28 years you didn't earn enough for the whole basic state pension, but when the second state pension you'd earned was added in you had a combined figure that was more than the new single tier pension amount.

Thankyou. That makes sense. I've also now had a look at Mrs .5Clue's page and she does indeed have lots of extra info saying what she'd get with current contribution, and how much with extra years, so seems pretty certain mine is fixed now.

Triumph13 wrote: »

I'm afraid you are one of the losers from the 2016 changes.

Well, if it wasn't for the fact I'm getting HRT relief on my work pension, and Mrs has had many years of credit for child benefit I'd feel a bit peeved.

Audaxer

Dazed_and_confused wrote: »

Not so sure you've understood that correctly.

If she didn't work/contribute any further NI then what would she get?

Could it be that (if earning enough) she has to contribute for another 6 years but there is no benefit for State Pension purposes in doing so?

No, my wife's SP forecast shows that £164.35 is the most she can get and she cannot improve her forecast any further. However it also says that the £164.35 is forecast only if she contributes for another 6 years. It also says her estimate based on her NI record to 5 April 2017 is £140.26. So if she stopped working now and didn't make any voluntary contributions, she would only get £140.26 (adjusted for inflation of course) when she reaches SP age.

Accordingly the OP says the most he can get is £174.62, but his SP forecast should also show what his estimate is based on his NI record to date. I'd be surprised if that figure was also £174.62. If the estimate to date is lower it will also say how many years he has to contribute to get to a forecast of £174.62. It's unlikely to be 18 years - but in view of the contributions he has already made it's more likely to be something like 6 years of contributions required to reach his maximum forecast. But as I say his SP page should clearly show these figures.

p00hsticks

Audaxer wrote: »

Accordingly the OP says the most he can get is £174.62, but his SP forecast should also show what his estimate is based on his NI record to date. I'd be surprised if that figure was also £174.62. If the estimate to date is lower it will also say how many years he has to contribute to get to a forecast of £174.62. It's unlikely to be 18 years - but in view of the contributions he has already made it's more likely to be something like 6 years of contributions required to reach his maximum forecast. But as I say his SP page should clearly show these figures.

The fact that the OP's figure is already over the maximum new State Pension amount of £164.35 means that it can't be increased further however many more further NI years they contribute.



The only way it could be higher than £164.35 is if it was already over that at the point the new State Pension was introduced (in April 2016).