Voluntary NI Contributions (live abroad)

[PerfumeIsAMessage]

Can anyone clarify please?

I've lived abroad for 23 years but have returned to work (summer schools) in the UK for almost all of those years, so have always paid some NI.

Looking at the NI contributions thingy on the Govt Gateway, almost all of the last 6 yrs have gaps, including one considerable one (when dd was tiny) when I did no UK work at all.

I'm quite happy to make these payments up, though am deeply confused about all the info regarding "do I need to make up " the payments.

The site is telling me I have 22 years of full contributions, 16 years to contribute before 2032 and 13 years with not enough contributions (of which I can make up the last 3 only as the others were donkeys years ago)

Thanks in advance

Do you plan to come back to the UK to work in the future? If so when?
Do you plan to retire to the U.K?
Have you been building up pension contributions in the country in which you're currently living? If so, is that country within the EU?

You can pay class two voluntary to make up previous years going back I believe a maximum of six years. If you're going to do so, you are time limited, as Class 2 is ceasing to exist in April 2018. You would then only be eligible to contribute via Class 3 voluntary NI contributions. This is a bad thing for two reasons:

1. it entitles you to less than Class 2 in terms of eligibility for benefits
2. it is more expensive by a long way. Class 2 is £2.80ish a week, I believe Class 3 is more like £14 per week.

Whether it's worth topping up at all is dependent on knowing a bit more about your situation, hence the questions above. If you've contributed throughout your time overseas to say French social security, there would be no point topping up NI as well, as under EU law it should be possible to amalgamate them when you retire.

Class 2 NI contributions are for the self-employed, so OP would have to be self-employed to pay them rather than the Class 3 rate. OP would have had to tell HMRC when she became self-employed so they'd have a record of her employment status for the years she wants to make up.

Hi Millocat,

That is incorrect (sorry to be rude, I don't mean to be, but it is important that the OP gets the correct advice here). The fact that she is overseas is the key factor in her particular situation, I recognise and acknowledge that Class 2 is usually made use of by U.K. Self employed individuals, but it is also perfectly valid for overseas workers, self employed or not.

I work in this area, as such can be totally sure.

If you click on this link and see the blue box to the right of the page, it touches on this matter.

www.pensionsadvisoryservice.org.uk/about-pensions/the-state-pension/voluntary-ni-contributions

Thanks for the clarification vino - I agree it's best to give correct advice to the OP and it's something I'm interested in learning more about.

The gov.uk page linked from your link says for people 'Living and working abroad' : Class 2 - but only if you worked in the UK immediately before leaving, and you’ve previously lived in the UK for 3 years in a row or paid 3 years’ National Insurance.

Does this apply to OP even when she has lived abroad for 23 years and worked in the UK during the summers?

HMRC could review the case if there were any doubt, however the fact OP says 'I can make up the last three only' suggests that this is HMRC's stance on the matter in her particular case, and they are happy for her to pay Class 2 for these years.

OP's question however was 'do I need to make up the payments?' which cannot be advised on without further background detail, hence the questions asking for further background detail!

Hi again,

Thanks for the replies!

I honestly don't know if I'll ever move back....(useless answer I know!) I will eventually own a house there, (my Mum's) but apart from my 3 months there every summer, I am pretty much settled here. As far as my work here goes, there have been years when I haven't paid much at all (part time work when dd was younger) For the last 4 years I've definitely paid a "full stamp" and will continue to do so for the (hopefully) fairly long term future. Prior to moving away I was a civil servant, so in continuous UK employment from graduating in 88 to moving away in 94.

On the Gov website, where it gave me my details- for the last 6 eligible years it gave me something like less than a couple of hundred quid to make up for 4 of them, one (this one obvs) not yet available, and one year where I would need to pay about £700.

I think, given the dire state of state pensions here (Italy- I'll be working till I'm 109 probably) I err towards making up the payments over there just because of how very bad it is here.

Thanks again!