National Insurance topping up missing years 21 February at 12:47PM in Pensions, annuities & retirement planning 49 replies 2.3K views

Meldrewretiree

I have been trying to top up a missing year for 2020 to 2021 however the Future Pensions site has an anserphone message saying you can’t do that until after April!! I am actually trying to give HM Government money but it won’t allow me to do that.
Has anyone else been trying to top up missing years and had the same issue??

pinnks

Not sure why you are calling Future Pensions to top up a year if you know it is beneficial (assuming that is the case by the way you word your question).  You need to call HMRC NIC Team on 0300 200 3500 to arrange actual payment.  They will check that you have spoken with DWP but then give you an 18-digit reference and bank details.

Meldrewretiree

Thank you…. I will try that number. 

I thought that youbrang the future pensions number first to confirm elegibilty and then the number you give to make the payment. Either way the answerphone is saying try again after April

p00hsticks

Meldrewretiree said:

Thank you…. I will try that number. 

I thought that youbrang the future pensions number first to confirm elegibilty and then the number you give to make the payment. Either way the answerphone is saying try again after April

Do you have a state pension forecast ?

If you post the details here (current forecast as at this year, predicted forecast if you continue to make paymentd, years still available to pay, years full before 2016, years full after 2016 and years where there are gaps) then people here should be able to tell you what the Pension Service woudl have told you.

You can then call the HMRC NI Enquiries line to actually get the details to make the payment.

And you'll still be able to buy that 2020-21 year after April, although it will cost a bit more.

Meldrewretiree said:

I am actually trying to give HM Government money but it won’t allow me to do that.

Swings and roundabouts really - as Mr Lewis is constantly pointing out, you are actually trying to give HM Government a relatively small amount of money now in return for a potentially far greater return further down the line, so you're not   necessarily doing them (and the taxpayers when you retire) a great favour....

molerat

So glad we got SIL's sorted out last year.  Probably shut the line down ahead of Mr Lewis on TV tonight !

pinnks

I am glad too that I called for my 18-digit for 2020/21 last week!

p00hsticks

molerat said:

So glad we got SIL's sorted out last year.  Probably shut the line down ahead of Mr Lewis on TV tonight !

I'm feeling partly smug and partly annoyed - I looked into it all in great detail a couple of years after the introduction of the NsP in 2016, paid a couple of post-2016 back years and set up a debit to pay for current years going forward.

I've now reached the point where buying any future years is going to be of little of no benefit (2023-24 will add the final 83p to my weekly amount), but as far as I can make out there is no method of cancelling the DD other than braving the clogged phone lines to HMRC ! I think I'm going  to wait until the new tax year and hopefully it won't then be a long wait to get through.

pinnks

Can you not cancel the DD at the bank and then have that conversation, rather than letting it run and trying to claim back?

GrubbyGirl_2

Don't understand that because I've just paid for 2020/21 and 2021/22

p00hsticks

GrubbyGirl_2 said:

Don't understand that because I've just paid for 2020/21 and 2021/22

I think some people are confusing the DWP Future Pension Service, where you go to check if any payments will actually boost your forecast (which apparently now has a message saying that they will only deal with enquiries relating to pre-2016 years until after April) and HMRC NI Enquiries, where you go to actually get the details to enable you to make the payments.

Saffypig

pinnks said:

I am glad too that I called for my 18-digit for 2020/21 last week!

Hi, so Hubby has his 18 digit reference to pay off a couple of years, but may want to pay another one off this FY.  Does anyone know if he can use the same ref, or is literally assigned to the years he told HMRC he's paying? 
Don't want to add extra money to that payment lf it won't be assigned? TIA