The deadline for individuals to make voluntary National Insurance Contributions (NICs) to cover any gaps in their NICs record from 6 April 2006 to 5 April 2017 has been extended by HMRC to 5 April 2025.
The full ‘new’ State Pension is currently £221.20 a week – however, how much individuals receive depends on how many ‘qualifying’ full National Insurance (NI) years they have. Most people collect NI years through working and paying NI, but you can also get them if you’re claiming benefits, receiving a child benefit or caring for others.
In general, you need around 35 full NI years to get the maximum State Pension. The number of full NIC qualifying years you have is important as it determines how much State Pension you will receive.
Ordinarily, individuals can only pay voluntary NICs for the previous 6 tax years so HMRC’s extension to 5 April 2025 is a good opportunity for those who need to top up further than the usual 6 tax years.
This extension to 5 April 2025 will mean that men born after 5 April 1951 or women born after 5 April 1953 now have more time to check their NICs record.
If this is a subject you would like to review, please get in touch with us as soon as possible.