State Pension: Option to Stop paying once reaching 35 qualifying years

MrE1

If I were to retire once I reach 35 qualifying years for national insurance (living off savings until I reach 68) would I still need to pay National Insurance to keep the eligibility for Full State Pension. Or could I have years of not contributing to NI once I reach 35 qualifying years.

I believe the answer to be I could have years thereafter without paying National Insurance, but I thought it diligent to check it out with this forum rather than assume. 

MallyGirl

35 years is only relevant if you have no NI history prior to 2016. Most people are under transitional rules which mean that the number of years you need depends on a variety of factors.
NI doesn't just pay for your state pension so you need to keep paying it as long as you earn enough and are under state pension age. You don't pay NI on pension income (just tax).

QrizB

MrE1 said:

Hi MallyGirl, If you have an answer to my 35 qualifying year query regarding state pensions feel free to respond to it if you wish.

MallyGirl has replied already?

Re your question:

MrE1 said:

If I were to retire once I reach 35 qualifying years for national insurance (living off savings until I reach 68) would I still need to pay National Insurance to keep the eligibility for Full State Pension. Or could I have years of not contributing to NI once I reach 35 qualifying years.

35 years is a red herring, unless you were born after 2000. Everyone born before then is subject to the transitional arrangements, which means you could need more than 35 full NI years, or fewer.

What does your State Pension forecast say, specifically?

https://www.gov.uk/check-state-pension

dealyboy

From what I understand @MrE1 the 35 years of full NI contributions or credits to qualify for a full new state pension applies only to those who have that record post 2016, it therefore applies only to those reach state pension age after 2051. If that is your situation it would appear that you and those around 50 in 2051 could cease paying NI for the purposes of the state pension at that point.

In the meantime I would say that the state pension has an almost 100% chance of changes that would affect this.

Of course there are many who currently have 40+ qualifying years but need to gain a few more to achieve the full qualification, this is due to transitional rules for those having qualifying years prior to 2016.

The state pension forecast is your friend, but needs to be interpreted carefully.

edit: @QrizB only saw your post after I submitted.