A woman increased her state pension payment rate by following a tip she heard on Martin Lewis’s podcast. To receive the “full” state pension – currently worth £221.20 a week – people must have enough “qualifying years” on their National Insurance (NI) records.
People accumulate these through active employment or by receiving NI credits, which are granted during periods of unemployment, illness, or while fulfilling parental or caregiving responsibilities. Typically, people need around 35 NI years to get the full state pension. Those who have gaps, which may have occurred when credits weren’t claimed, can increase their state pension by purchasing additional NI years or claiming credits.
This was the case for Martin Lewis fan Martine, who found she was missing as many as eight years of contributions on her record.
She wrote to the Money Saving Expert (MSE) team: “After listening to Martin’s podcast, I checked my NI contributions and found I had eight years missing! I’ve now paid six years and will pay the next two years when possible. This has made a difference of about £49 a week, which is considerable! I’d never have known without the podcast! Thank you.”
Putting the payment into context, the MSE team suggested that Martine would have paid up to £5,000 (possibly less) to bag the increase. In doing so, she’s managed to boost her state pension rate by £2,250 a year.
MSE added: “If she lives for the typical 20 years after state pension age, that’d be a total uplift of around £51,000… and it’s inflation-proofed.”
While this move can be beneficial for some, it may not be for others.
People can check their National Insurance record and state pension forecast on the GOV.UK website to see if they’d benefit.
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) and the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) also offer an online state pension forecast service to help people calculate if they’ll benefit from making voluntary contributions.
It’s becoming increasingly urgent to make this check, as the deadline to fill gaps dating back to 2006 is approaching in April. After April 2025, individuals will only be able to make contributions for the previous six tax years, potentially losing out on thousands of pounds.
How to make voluntary National Insurance contributions
If you find missing years and want to fill the gaps, first check if you qualify for free National Insurance (NI) credits. If not, you can pay to fill the gaps via post or phone.
To pay online, visit the “Check your State Pension forecast” page on GOV.UK or use the HMRC app, available for free on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.
Log in with your Government Gateway ID and password. Once logged in, select the NI years to purchase and see how much your state pension will increase. You can securely pay online via bank transfer or Open Banking – payments must be made in full.
If you prefer to pay by phone, contact HMRC to receive an 18-digit reference number. You’ll need this to ensure the payments are added to your record correctly. After receiving the reference, you can pay through your bank, app banking, or by cheque. If paying by cheque, processing may take longer.
Once paid, it may take up to 60 working days for the payment to be reflected on your NI record. If you’re already claiming the state pension, HMRC will inform the DWP to adjust your payments, which will be backdated to the date of payment, not the date you started claiming the state pension.
