Jobseeker’s Allowance - NI requirements.

green_man

My lad has recently had his jobseekers claim rejected on the grounds of ‘insufficient Class 1 NI contributions’

Does anyone know what the actual requirements are for NI contributions?


He is 19 and had worked for 11 months and payed NI (all be it a small amount of about £10-£15 a month due to his low wage) until losing his job last November,  since then he had worked a few casual jobs (not paying NI).  Before that he was in the army for 4 months and payed NI. Before that was in education.

The claim forms seem to say the requirement is to have payed NI in the past 2-3 years (which he has). But does this mean payed a full 2-3 years of NI?  I can see no reference to an actual minimum amount of NI that must be payed.

any ideas?

Brie

I agree it seems unclear as to the actual eligibility would he be eligible for UC instead?

Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA): Eligibility - GOV.UK  there's a link towards the bottom of the page.

or check on "entitled to".

Caz3121

they will use tax years for measurement so the last two tax years. Currently this is the years 22-23 and 23-24

twopenny

It's not that easy to find out - and I fell into this pot hole when I was young.

Also it changes, the Qualifying Year.

Sounds as though he hasn't paid for enough credits from the time he was 18.

Did no one at the Job Centre explain? If not I'd advise going back and seeing if there's someone who would explain where he stands and how he should proceed in the future.

There used to be someone who would do this but times change and cutbacks etc. If there's no one there he could try Citizens Advice.

It's important as although he's so young whatever he does next keeping those contributions paid should be a priority.

Spoonie_Turtle

This refers to contributions-based JSA but the conditions are exactly the same for New Style JSA https://www.entitledto.co.uk/help/jobseekers-allowance

Unless he has savings or other capital over £16,000, he should apply for Universal Credit which will pay him the same amount as JSA would.

green_man

Caz3121 said:

they will use tax years for measurement so the last two tax years. Currently this is the years 22-23 and 23-24

Are you saying you think you need two full years credit?   What constitutes a full years credit?

twopenny said:

Sounds as though he hasn't paid for enough credits from the time he was 18.

Did no one at the Job Centre explain? 

Well he was 18 in Dec 23 and worked from then until Nov24 and paid NI (small amount) so 11 months, but some would have been in tax year 23-24 and some in 24-25. 

He’s not been to the job centre, all applied online, so maybe a visit is required.


Have to say the information provided is appalling in this regard, it can’t be that hard to put a document up that explains what the actual eligibility criteria for NI contributions is!

p00hsticks

green_man said:

Have to say the information provided is appalling in this regard, it can’t be that hard to put a document up that explains what the actual eligibility criteria for NI contributions is!

Not sure this is specifically for public consumption but try this parliamentary document  
119._New_Style_JSA_only_V4.0_.pdf

which includes the following infomration 

To be entitled to New Style JSA, a claimant must first satisfy the two following contribution conditions. They must normally have both of the following:

• paid (or be treated as having paid) Class 1 National Insurance contributions as an employee (or class 2 for share fishermen and volunteer development workers) for 26 weeks (but not necessarily consecutive weeks) of at least 26 times the Lower Earnings Limit in 1 of the 2 complete tax years that fall before the start of the benefit year in which the claim begins.
 • paid (or be treated as having paid) or been credited with Class 1 Nation Insurance contributions (or class 2 for share fishermen and volunteer development workers) that amount to at least 50 times the Lower Earnings Limit in each of the two 2 years

A benefit year runs from the first Sunday (each year) in January and ends on the first Saturday immediately preceding the first Sunday in January the following year.

The two complete tax years that fall before the relevant benefit year are called relevant income tax years (RITYS).

poppy12345

twopenny said:

Did no one at the Job Centre explain? If not I'd advise going back and seeing if there's someone who would explain where he stands and how he should proceed in the future.

That's not something I would advise because they are not benefits advisors and they have been known to give incorrect information. 

green_man said:

Caz3121 said:

they will use tax years for measurement so the last two tax years. Currently this is the years 22-23 and 23-24

Are you saying you think you need two full years credit?   What constitutes a full years credit?

Please refer to the link that Spoonie posted. If he doesn't have capital of more than £16,000 then he should claiming Universal Credit. 

Caz3121

green_man said:

Well he was 18 in Dec 23 and worked from then until Nov24 and paid NI (small amount) so 11 months, but some would have been in tax year 23-24 and some in 24-25. 

24-25 contributions won't count until January 2026 so only 22-23 and 23-24 are looked at currently

as per P00sticks post 
"A benefit year runs from the first Sunday (each year) in January and ends on the first Saturday immediately preceding the first Sunday in January the following year.

The two complete tax years that fall before the relevant benefit year are called relevant income tax years (RITYS)."

Universal Credit is what he should be looking at

huckster

@green_man

Your Son could call JSA to request mandatory reconsideration, so a Decision Maker can check NI record. And as part of the request ask JSA to confirm what NI data they actually used.

But this process takes time, so he should look to claim UC.

HillStreetBlues

What's "recently" as a person could claim on the 4th Jan and be entitled to it but the 5th not, or vice versa