help with ni contibutions

kas56

hi i am dissabled lady and married my husband gets pension i am due my pension this year but i am 5 yrs short in cotributions this is due to being married and my husband getting pension is there anyway i can get credit for these years i have been dissabled a lot of years and was in reciept of my own benifits untill i married and it all stopped my esa i get high rate dla and mobility componet my husband gets pension credit for me but thats all can you help

NedS

You would have been credited NI credits for the years you claimed qualifying benefits. If these stopped once you married, then you will need to pay for those years. Do consider buying any missing years as they represent an excellent return on investment and it is well worth doing.

calcotti

You can ask HMRC how much it will cost for you to make good missing years. However you need to be careful doing this because the rules are complex because it is likely that only years since 2016 will make a difference to your entitlement.

One thing puzzles me though. If you were on ESA even when the payments stopped you should have continued to receive NI credits for having Limited Capability for Work.

Have you had a Pension Forecast and if so does it clearly show that you have a shortfall and tell you about paying for missing years?
https://www.gov.uk/check-state-pension

kas56

yes it does but i feel i should still get my contributiond as i did before i got married

calcotti

kas56 said:

yes it does but i feel i should still get my contributiond as i did before i got married

Unfortunately it doesn't matter what you feel, what matters is whether or not you met a qualifying condition to receive NI credits in some way.

As mentioned above I am not clear why, if you were the ESA claimant, you did not continue to receive NI credits even after your ESA payment entitlement ended (due to your husbands income). When did the ESA stop and is it the following yersatht are missing. Even so it may be worth contacting ESA and telling them that you understand that when the ESA stopped you should have continued to get NI credits but that HMRC have no record of them and ask DWP to investigate.

comeandgo

Be careful of buying extra years if that extra income takes you out of the benefit system you may loose entitlement to some or all benefits.

calcotti

comeandgo said:

Be careful of buying extra years if that extra income takes you out of the benefit system you may loose entitlement to some or all benefits.

Good point. OP, as you know your husband's pension income and know what yours will be it is sensible to do a benefit check to see if you will, as a couple, be entitled to any means tested benefits after you reach pension age. If so, as comeandgo says it, may not be worth buying any extra years.