National Insurance - A Levels, child benefit, predictions etc

ChilliBob

Hey guys,

I have just checked my national insurance record on the Gov.uk website and it wasn't quite what I expected. For reference 'me' = Age 41, currently a homemaker. 

1.
It seems when I was doing my A Levels, tax years 1998-1999, 1999-2000 I had two full years?

2. 
When working part time whilst at Uni for the next three years, nothing! - Perhaps I wasn't doing enough hours in those years?

3.
Then follows my 'proper career years', full years from 2004 - 2021. What's confusing here though is I was made redundant in November 2000 yet 2020-2021 is classed as a full year. I did make large pension over payments at this time, but this doesn't quite add up.


Research into all this was because I intend to transfer our child benefit into my name to get the national insurance benefits primarily. Based on my daughters age, and the fact I can pay for 2021-2022, 2022-2023, 2023-2024, I think when my daughter is 12 it would take me to 34 years. Presumably at this time I could pay for one more year, if I wasn't working, in 2035-2036?

Not sure what the cost will be for that last year in 12 years time, but I'd guess to fill the gaps for the three years above it's going to be about 2.5-2.6k. 

It's my understanding that doing this, and then perhaps 1.5k or whatever it will be by 2035, would enable me to have full state pension. And not doing this, i.e. spending between 2.5-4k or so, and transferring benefits over, means I either don't qualify, or have a vastly reduced state pension?

So yeah, anything I'm missing as regards transferring over to my name? And what's the reasoning behind points 1-3 above? - I looked into the first one, can't see any reason for these payments!

Any help much appreciated. Thanks

molerat

1) You got a freebie each year age 16, 17 & 18

2) Most likely the reason

3) Earning 52 x LEL in a year will get you a full year even if you don't work the full time. Currently that's just over £6K.

ChilliBob

As regards point 2, it seems minimum wage in the early 00s was something like £4 or so, I seem to remember getting 'London Weighting' and perhaps a bit more but I doubt it was more than £5-6 quid. I think I'd need to earn £75 per week to get any NI credits? - which would be 15hrs at £5ph. I seem to recall working usually about 12hrs per week. So, perhaps that explains that one! (Unfortunately!)

Dazed_and_C0nfused

I think when my daughter is 12 it would take me to 34 years. Presumably at this time I could pay for one more year, if I wasn't working, in 2035-2036?

As you come under transitional rules why do you think 35 years is relevant?

Have you actually checked what you have accrued to date and how many extra years are needed to reach your personal maximum of £221.20/week?

ChilliBob

molerat said:

1) You got a freebie each year age 16, 17 & 18

2) Most likely the reason

3) Earning 52 x LEL in a year will get you a full year even if you don't work the full time. Currently that's just over £6K.

Oh, wonderful, gotta love freebies, how very MSE. That seems odd though as research now suggests full time education doesn't generate any contributions - perhaps just good timing for me? It just says 52 credits, per year.

Yeah, 2. make sense now.

I see. I've looked and it seems in my 'partial year' of work I'd paid NI of over 4.5k, in previous full working years more like 5.5k.

On the face of it, there's explanations to make me think it's probably all correct.

Which I guess I just need to evaluate spending say 4k overall or so to then get the full state pension. Looking now it seems:

Estimate based on your National Insurance record up to 5 April 2023

£158.95 a week

Forecast if you contribute another 10 years before 5 April 2050

£221.20 a week

molerat

The freebies stopped in 2010 as part  of a wider change.

ChilliBob

Dazed_and_C0nfused said:

I think when my daughter is 12 it would take me to 34 years. Presumably at this time I could pay for one more year, if I wasn't working, in 2035-2036?

As you come under transitional rules why do you think 35 years is relevant?

Have you actually checked what you have accrued to date and how many extra years are needed to reach your personal maximum of £221.20/week?

It's what I'd read/been told - to be honest, today is the first time I'm properly giving this any attention, it's been on the 'stuff to look into' list for some time. So yeah, I'm sure to find information that contradicts what I knew as of 9am this morning - as this thread proves already!

'Transitional rules' - care to explain more or point me in the direction of some more info?

In terms of checked 'how much I have accrued', in terms of full years, partial years I can pay for, predicted years if I switch child benefit over, yes, checked, that's how I got to my 34 years. Nice little simple spreadsheet

vacheron

Regarding transferring the child benefit into your name, if the CB is currently paid to your partner / spouse who also works and paid NI anyway, you can have the Child Benefit part of their "double NI" earnings transferrred to you retrospectively. If you fill in this form every few years you don't need to switch the CB over.

You can usually only go back one tax year, but I asked for the previous 5 years to be transferred over to my wife a few years ago and they obliged without issue.

Form / Info here.

Dazed_and_C0nfused

From your later post you have accrued £158.95.

An additional nine (post 2016) years will take you to £215.83 and a tenth will add the final £5.37 to give you £221.20.

Age UK have an ok guide.

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&opi=89978449&url=https://www.ageuk.org.uk/globalassets/age-uk/documents/factsheets/fs19_state_pension_fcs.pdf&ved=2ahUKEwja4MqI0ZeIAxV3WUEAHQaiAB4QFnoECB4QAQ&usg=AOvVaw250FoThvfD_U8QVfUxSA1N

ChilliBob

vacheron said:

Regarding transferring the child benefit into your name, if the CB is currently paid to your partner / spouse who also works and paid NI anyway, you can have the Child Benefit part of their "double NI" earnings transferrred to you retrospectively. If you fill in this form every few years you don't need to switch the CB over.

You can usually only go back one tax year, but I asked for the previous 5 years to be transferred over to my wife a few years ago and they obliged without issue.

Form / Info here.

That's very useful, thanks. The CB goes into a joint account anyway so the ££ makes no difference. 

ChilliBob

vacheron said:

Regarding transferring the child benefit into your name, if the CB is currently paid to your partner / spouse who also works and paid NI anyway, you can have the Child Benefit part of their "double NI" earnings transferrred to you retrospectively. If you fill in this form every few years you don't need to switch the CB over.

You can usually only go back one tax year, but I asked for the previous 5 years to be transferred over to my wife a few years ago and they obliged without issue.

Form / Info here.

Just looking into this - did you give any justification for doing it late to get more than one year? - And was it via one of the forms post/print or was it online? Cheers!