Boosting your state pension should now be quicker and easier as new online tool launches

molerat

Penguin69 said:

I've successfully managed to top up one year that cost me £77 and has given me more than £12 per week benefit. I eventually managed to negotiate the HMRC website having had to fib about when I intend to stop paying NIC. I chose the option that says I will stop paying NIC before my state pension age and declared it to be next year. With that done I was offered 3 options, of which the first was what I wanted. I was then able to authorise the payment by being redirected to my bank account and all went remarkably smoothly! So huge well done MSE and a massive thank you!

How did one year give £12, that's not possible ?

Doctor_Who

molerat said:

Penguin69 said:

I've successfully managed to top up one year that cost me £77 and has given me more than £12 per week benefit. I eventually managed to negotiate the HMRC website having had to fib about when I intend to stop paying NIC. I chose the option that says I will stop paying NIC before my state pension age and declared it to be next year. With that done I was offered 3 options, of which the first was what I wanted. I was then able to authorise the payment by being redirected to my bank account and all went remarkably smoothly! So huge well done MSE and a massive thank you!

How did one year give £12, that's not possible ?

I've checked my two missing years using the new online system - it says that paying for one year will increase the weekly pension by £12.64 and paying for two years increases it by £18.96. My calculations show that paying for one year should add £6.32 to the weekly pension, hence it looks like the online system is somehow adding an extra year (maybe 2023-24 or 2024-25). I've just phoned the Future Pensions Centre and they said my calculations are correct!

HUMBUG

Doesn't work if you took early retirement and stopped paying NI contributions.  I stopped working when I was 57 years old and have just been living on my company pension, so stopped paying contributions 8 years ago. The online tool asks the question whether you stopped paying NI contributions, if you answer yes this is the message you will receive. 



-----------------------------------------------------

Contact the Future Pension Centre

Find out the best way to increase your State Pension

You told us you have already stopped paying National Insurance. This means you are unable to pay for gaps online.

-----------------------------------------------------

I've already contacted the 'Future Pension Centre' so this tool is wasting my time and sending me full circle.

I've therefore given up trying to get the 18  digit code as I cannot get through to them on the phone after several attempts.  

So just wrote a letter , stating my name/address/ NI number, listed the periods of NI contributions (with the amounts)  I wish to pay,  attached a cheque for the full amount , put my 'Name /NI number /Periods/Amounts'  on the back of the cheque and just posted it to them. 

I stated in the letter that I phoned the Future Pension Centre and they informed me that my state pension would increase by about £20 pw after paying gaps for 4 years (£3.25 k).  Apparently, I will start benefiting from that increase if I manage to live  +3.2 yrs.

Fingers crossed that my letter and cheque will be processed without any future problems.

MeteredOut

HUMBUG said:

Doesn't work if you took early retirement and stopped paying NI contributions.  I stopped working when I was 57 years old and have just been living on my company pension, so stopped paying contributions 8 years ago. The online tool asks the question whether you stopped paying NI contributions, if you answer yes this is the message you will receive. 



-----------------------------------------------------

Contact the Future Pension Centre

Find out the best way to increase your State Pension

You told us you have already stopped paying National Insurance. This means you are unable to pay for gaps online.

-----------------------------------------------------

I've already contacted the 'Future Pension Centre' so this tool is wasting my time and sending me full circle.

I've therefore given up trying to get the 18  digit code as I cannot get through to them on the phone after several attempts.  

So just wrote a letter , stating my name/address/ NI number, listed the periods of NI contributions (with the amounts)  I wish to pay,  attached a cheque for the full amount , put my 'Name /NI number /Periods/Amounts'  on the back of the cheque and just posted it to them. 

I stated in the letter that I phoned the Future Pension Centre and they informed me that my state pension would increase by about £20 pw after paying gaps for 4 years (£3.25 k).  Apparently, I will start benefiting from that increase if I manage to live  +3.2 yrs.

Fingers crossed that my letter and cheque will be processed without any future problems.

Please keep us updated if this works. We're trying to pay for some missing years for my wife, but the new system does not want to help (says it cannot be done online and to phone up) and she can never get through.

pinnks

I fell into that trap too but if you read the question carefully, you see it is not relevant to your situation (or mine) as you do not envisage stopping paying NI before pension age - you envisage continuing to pay voluntarily.  Very poorly worded question in my view.  If you choose another option (I cannot recall them all without looking), then it takes you further and shows the years you can fill, though unhelpfully, makes no reference to 2023/24 even though that year is not closed.

Anyway, I need to pay 2021/22, 2022/23 and 2023/24 to max out on my pension (due 2024/25) and it shows the correct info and outcome for the first 2.  Perhaps 2023/24 will show up once NI records for that year are updated more generally but it would be helpful to have received a message saying something along those lines.

If you know what you are doing and understand the detail of the rules then you can navigate it but for many at whom it is aimed it will serve only to further confuse.

HUMBUG

MeteredOut said:

HUMBUG said:

Doesn't work if you took early retirement and stopped paying NI contributions.  I stopped working when I was 57 years old and have just been living on my company pension, so stopped paying contributions 8 years ago. The online tool asks the question whether you stopped paying NI contributions, if you answer yes this is the message you will receive. 



-----------------------------------------------------

Contact the Future Pension Centre

Find out the best way to increase your State Pension

You told us you have already stopped paying National Insurance. This means you are unable to pay for gaps online.

-----------------------------------------------------

I've already contacted the 'Future Pension Centre' so this tool is wasting my time and sending me full circle.

I've therefore given up trying to get the 18  digit code as I cannot get through to them on the phone after several attempts.  

So just wrote a letter , stating my name/address/ NI number, listed the periods of NI contributions (with the amounts)  I wish to pay,  attached a cheque for the full amount , put my 'Name /NI number /Periods/Amounts'  on the back of the cheque and just posted it to them. 

I stated in the letter that I phoned the Future Pension Centre and they informed me that my state pension would increase by about £20 pw after paying gaps for 4 years (£3.25 k).  Apparently, I will start benefiting from that increase if I manage to live  +3.2 yrs.

Fingers crossed that my letter and cheque will be processed without any future problems.

Please keep us updated if this works. We're trying to pay for some missing years for my wife, but the new system does not want to help (says it cannot be done online and to phone up) and she can never get through.

The process to pay by post is in the link below.

Pay voluntary Class 3 National Insurance: By cheque through the post - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

I do not have an HMRC payslip with an 18 digit reference number and its says the following (hope it helps):

-----------------------------

If you do not have an HMRC payslip

Include a note with:

• your name, address and phone number
• how much you’re paying
• the period you’re paying for
• your 18-digit reference number or National Insurance number

--------------------------

There is also an HMRC community forum which says the following:

How to pay Voluntary contributions to fill gaps - Community Forum - GOV.UK (hmrc.gov.uk)

1.  You can contact HMRC to obtain an 18 digit reference number. You can then use this number to pay online, at your bank, or via online banking. The contact number for HMRC is 0300 2003500, lines are open between 8am and 6pm.
2. You can write to us, and include a cheque for the amount DWP have advised you can be paid. You should include your National Insurance number and the years you would like to pay on the reverse of the cheque and include a covering letter. 

They have a posting address on the forum which is out of date because the post was over 1 year old.  The correct postal address is in the link I posted further above which is:

HM Revenue and Customs
National Insurance Contributions and Employer Office
BX5 5BD

Doctor_Who

pinnks said:

I fell into that trap too but if you read the question carefully, you see it is not relevant to your situation (or mine) as you do not envisage stopping paying NI before pension age - you envisage continuing to pay voluntarily.  Very poorly worded question in my view.  If you choose another option (I cannot recall them all without looking), then it takes you further and shows the years you can fill, though unhelpfully, makes no reference to 2023/24 even though that year is not closed.

Anyway, I need to pay 2021/22, 2022/23 and 2023/24 to max out on my pension (due 2024/25) and it shows the correct info and outcome for the first 2.  Perhaps 2023/24 will show up once NI records for that year are updated more generally but it would be helpful to have received a message saying something along those lines.

If you know what you are doing and understand the detail of the rules then you can navigate it but for many at whom it is aimed it will serve only to further confuse.

The only option out of the 4 possibilities that worked for me was 'Before I reach State Pension age', I then had to enter a date at some point in the future when I would stop paying NI. I could then see the years that I could pay for, although the quoted figures for the amount the weekly pension would increase by didn't seem correct. I think the system assumes you will keep working until the date you entered, and includes those years in the calculation. I'm reasonably clued up on this, but the fact that paying for one year apparently increased the weekly pension by more than the expected £6.32 (£12.64 actually) confused me and resulted in a call to FPC. So much for a simple, online system to make class 3 NI contributions!

MeteredOut

HUMBUG said:

MeteredOut said:

HUMBUG said:

Doesn't work if you took early retirement and stopped paying NI contributions.  I stopped working when I was 57 years old and have just been living on my company pension, so stopped paying contributions 8 years ago. The online tool asks the question whether you stopped paying NI contributions, if you answer yes this is the message you will receive. 



-----------------------------------------------------

Contact the Future Pension Centre

Find out the best way to increase your State Pension

You told us you have already stopped paying National Insurance. This means you are unable to pay for gaps online.

-----------------------------------------------------

I've already contacted the 'Future Pension Centre' so this tool is wasting my time and sending me full circle.

I've therefore given up trying to get the 18  digit code as I cannot get through to them on the phone after several attempts.  

So just wrote a letter , stating my name/address/ NI number, listed the periods of NI contributions (with the amounts)  I wish to pay,  attached a cheque for the full amount , put my 'Name /NI number /Periods/Amounts'  on the back of the cheque and just posted it to them. 

I stated in the letter that I phoned the Future Pension Centre and they informed me that my state pension would increase by about £20 pw after paying gaps for 4 years (£3.25 k).  Apparently, I will start benefiting from that increase if I manage to live  +3.2 yrs.

Fingers crossed that my letter and cheque will be processed without any future problems.

Please keep us updated if this works. We're trying to pay for some missing years for my wife, but the new system does not want to help (says it cannot be done online and to phone up) and she can never get through.

The process to pay by post is in the link below.

Pay voluntary Class 3 National Insurance: By cheque through the post - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

I do not have an HMRC payslip with an 18 digit reference number and its says the following (hope it helps):

-----------------------------

If you do not have an HMRC payslip

Include a note with:

• your name, address and phone number
• how much you’re paying
• the period you’re paying for
• your 18-digit reference number or National Insurance number

--------------------------

There is also an HMRC community forum which says the following:

How to pay Voluntary contributions to fill gaps - Community Forum - GOV.UK (hmrc.gov.uk)

1.  You can contact HMRC to obtain an 18 digit reference number. You can then use this number to pay online, at your bank, or via online banking. The contact number for HMRC is 0300 2003500, lines are open between 8am and 6pm.
2. You can write to us, and include a cheque for the amount DWP have advised you can be paid. You should include your National Insurance number and the years you would like to pay on the reverse of the cheque and include a covering letter. 

They have a posting address on the forum which is out of date because the post was over 1 year old.  The correct postal address is in the link I posted further above which is:

HM Revenue and Customs
National Insurance Contributions and Employer Office
BX5 5BD

Thanks, we'd missed that you could to it just with a NI number. It'd be good to hear if anyone has done this and how long it took for the cheque to be cleared and the money to appear on the HMRC account.

pinnks

Doctor_Who said:

pinnks said:

I fell into that trap too but if you read the question carefully, you see it is not relevant to your situation (or mine) as you do not envisage stopping paying NI before pension age - you envisage continuing to pay voluntarily.  Very poorly worded question in my view.  If you choose another option (I cannot recall them all without looking), then it takes you further and shows the years you can fill, though unhelpfully, makes no reference to 2023/24 even though that year is not closed.

Anyway, I need to pay 2021/22, 2022/23 and 2023/24 to max out on my pension (due 2024/25) and it shows the correct info and outcome for the first 2.  Perhaps 2023/24 will show up once NI records for that year are updated more generally but it would be helpful to have received a message saying something along those lines.

If you know what you are doing and understand the detail of the rules then you can navigate it but for many at whom it is aimed it will serve only to further confuse.

The only option out of the 4 possibilities that worked for me was 'Before I reach State Pension age', I then had to enter a date at some point in the future when I would stop paying NI. I could then see the years that I could pay for, although the quoted figures for the amount the weekly pension would increase by didn't seem correct. I think the system assumes you will keep working until the date you entered, and includes those years in the calculation. I'm reasonably clued up on this, but the fact that paying for one year apparently increased the weekly pension by more than the expected £6.32 (£12.64 actually) confused me and resulted in a call to FPC. So much for a simple, online system to make class 3 NI contributions!

This sparked my interest, so I logged in to have a look.

I can select either the "until I reach pension age", or a "point in the future options" and get similarly confusing information.

As mentioned earlier, it seems they don't show 2023/24 yet but do assume that you will pay all future years until your chosen stop date.

So, if I pay the gap year 2021/22 and am presumed to pay 2023/24, then my pension will increase by 2 x £6.32.  It then says that if I pay for my 2 gap years, I increase my estimate by 3 x £6.32. While technically correct it will confuse the hxxl out of anyone who is not well-versed in the rules.  All it needs is a line that says, filling this gap will add £6.32 and continuing to pay for 2023/24 until 20XX/YY will add a further £X.

Doctor_Who

pinnks said:

Doctor_Who said:

pinnks said:

I fell into that trap too but if you read the question carefully, you see it is not relevant to your situation (or mine) as you do not envisage stopping paying NI before pension age - you envisage continuing to pay voluntarily.  Very poorly worded question in my view.  If you choose another option (I cannot recall them all without looking), then it takes you further and shows the years you can fill, though unhelpfully, makes no reference to 2023/24 even though that year is not closed.

Anyway, I need to pay 2021/22, 2022/23 and 2023/24 to max out on my pension (due 2024/25) and it shows the correct info and outcome for the first 2.  Perhaps 2023/24 will show up once NI records for that year are updated more generally but it would be helpful to have received a message saying something along those lines.

If you know what you are doing and understand the detail of the rules then you can navigate it but for many at whom it is aimed it will serve only to further confuse.

The only option out of the 4 possibilities that worked for me was 'Before I reach State Pension age', I then had to enter a date at some point in the future when I would stop paying NI. I could then see the years that I could pay for, although the quoted figures for the amount the weekly pension would increase by didn't seem correct. I think the system assumes you will keep working until the date you entered, and includes those years in the calculation. I'm reasonably clued up on this, but the fact that paying for one year apparently increased the weekly pension by more than the expected £6.32 (£12.64 actually) confused me and resulted in a call to FPC. So much for a simple, online system to make class 3 NI contributions!

This sparked my interest, so I logged in to have a look.

I can select either the "until I reach pension age", or a "point in the future options" and get similarly confusing information.

As mentioned earlier, it seems they don't show 2023/24 yet but do assume that you will pay all future years until your chosen stop date.

So, if I pay the gap year 2021/22 and am presumed to pay 2023/24, then my pension will increase by 2 x £6.32.  It then says that if I pay for my 2 gap years, I increase my estimate by 3 x £6.32. While technically correct it will confuse the hxxl out of anyone who is not well-versed in the rules.  All it needs is a line that says, filling this gap will add £6.32 and continuing to pay for 2023/24 until 20XX/YY will add a further £X.

I think the reason why 'When I reach State Pension age' gave me zero options to pay for missing years (despite having two missing years) is that I have more than 6 years to state pension age (retired early) and I only need 6 years to get the maximum state pension. The system assumes I will work/receive credits for those 6 years and hence don't need to buy extra years! I plan to buy the two missing years before the price goes up next April 2025. I agree that the way the figures are presented will cause confusion, indeed in a post earlier in this thread someone thought they had bought an extra ~£12 per week pension by buying one missing year.