Opted out of child benefit and now I have missed out on National Insurance for state pension. Please help!

[Nyli]

I haven't worked for several years (for various reasons, including looking after my 2 children, age 16 and 15). My partner is a higher rate tax payer.

Back in 2020 we opted out of child benefit to save him having to repay it via self assessment. But I didn't realise this meant I would lose my national insurance credits. I'm now 52 and have just checked my state pension forecast for the first time and I'm in a bit of a panic. The last 3 years are missing. I see that I can make a voluntary payment of about £800 for each year I've missed, but we don't have enough money to do that. I have no other pension and my relationship is very rocky, we may split up.

I have 2 questions. Is there any way I can get child benefit or get the NI credits backdated for the missing years? If not, can I restart child benefit now so I don't miss out on the next few years while my kids are still in education? Thank you for your help!

Wouldn’t you have gotten NI credits those past twenty years because of the WCA saying you are too disabled to work when you applied for ESA?

That is a huge relief to know there are pension credits available for those of us who may never contribute enough, to help top up the pension.

I've never applied for any disability benefits. DH has always worked and the absolute hell people I know have been through attempting to claim put me off doing so myself.

It's worth mentioning on this thread for those who might have looked after grandchildren under the age of 12 that their parents can transfer the NI credits to you. There is a form online and it's fairly easy to fill in out and takes about 12 weeks for the credits to be transferred to you

They don’t top you up to full state pension of £203.85/week.
If you are single, it tops you up to £201.05
But if you have a partner, it tops joint household income up to £306.85

So if your partner was a high earner, then there is a good chance you’d not be eligible for any pension credit.

That’s a shame. If you’d applied for ESA, whether you qualify for the benefit money or not, you’d get the NI credits either way. Or you could apply for PIP and use that money to pay voluntary NI for yourself if your DH income means the money isn’t needed.

Thing is your DH is only an illness or accident away from being disabled too so I know it is hell to go through the process, but it’s prudent to put in the effort imho.

That’s interesting…as I’m 52 and assumed it was 35 years. But having looked at the government gateway (actually via the HMRC app, which is brilliant) I need to make 2 more years contributions, and have 34 full years already, plus 3 incomplete years while I was at university. Oh well, almost there 😂Thanks :)

No, my DH is not a higher rate tax payer. Should be fine.

I don’t think you are following me. The fact your DH is not a higher rate tax payer means you probably won’t be fine as a couple.

If you have no or very little state pension, you will need your DH to be a higher rate taxpayer because higher rate taxpayers tend to have private pension pots that provide a decent annual income on top of the state pension.

If you are of state pension age but don’t have the full state pension, but your DH does collect a full state pension (and nothing else) the most pension credit will do is top up your joint income to £306.85/week which is £15,956 annual household income. This is significantly below what your household income would be (£21,200) if the two of you had the full state pension and only the full state pension.

If your partner is still working, it is unlikely they’d be earning less than £16/yr, so you’d get £0 in pension credit. If your partner is collecting a full state pension and has no other pension income at all, all pension credit does is give you £103/week extra.

Most sahms I know just register as self employed once the dcs turn 12, then they can pay class 2 NI credits at 3.45pw, which is cheaper than the class 3 credits (17.45pw). (The autumn statement stated that there will still be an option to pay class 2 credits voluntarily). None of them do anything more complicated than a bit of ebay selling or dog walking.

A couple of them have disabled relatives and have been able to help out a bit to claim a carer's credit (NI credit if you care for 20+ hours a week, no checks on what caring is done as long as the disabled person gets PIP).

Or the other option I've seen work is to claim credits only ESA, which can be fairly straightforward depending on the illness/disability they have (I've known people to get it for mobility issues and back pain).

Thanks for pointing out that I am well and truly f*cked. I probably won't be alive to see pension age so won't worry about it too much as I might be lucky to get hit by a bus by the age of 70. The government are obviously hoping not to pay out and they will be hoping folk die before they are eligible for state pension. They keep pushing up the age. Unrealistic. Especially if you have various chronic health issues.

Glad I read this. I have 7 years missing from uni. I too thought it was 35, but now it could be 42, what a pain. I only have 28 currently.

OP here, thanks so much for the input. Lots to digest. I had no idea that the NI contributions stopped after your kids turn 12. I haven't been working due to anxiety but realise I need to get a job ASAP. And no, we're not married...

It's once they turn 12 so think OP has missed out

@Nyli you are in a really precarious position. Do you have any independent income from investments or savings in your own name? Is your anxiety severe enough that you may be eligible for any benefits, or do you feel able to work? You are doing the right thing reviewing finances now and I'm sure you will get some excellent support on here if you post a little more detail of your financial situation. You will need to act quickly if your relationship is ending as it's going to be tough for you. But you are still fairly young and can turn things around.

If you’re not married, have no income and no pension then sorry, but you can’t leave him.

If you were married, you could get some of his pensions. You’d get money in a divorce too as he is a high earner. But you’re not so… no financial settlement when you split and no share of his pension. You need to get him to pay the missing years for you, so that your pension is more guaranteed. And you need to get a job because “anxiety” just isn’t a good enough reason.

She can leave whenever she likes. Doing so may have consequences for pensions but as long as she knows what she's letting herself in for she can go.

If she cannot work due to anxiety, and it most certainly can be a real and good reason, then if she's separated (living with a high earner would likely rule her out) then may be entitled to means tested Universal Credit which would give Class 3 NICs and cover the pension - but not much else.

If she can't get that she might still be able to get NI credits as (AIUI) she can still claim Employment Support Allowance (or Job Seekers) on a 'credits only' basis.

She needs professional advice, not half cocked stuff from people on here.

Sounds as if your chronic health issue is not severe enough for claiming DLA as I have a health condition that would probably not be seen as severe enough either to claim Scottish equivalent but unable to work just now as I am studying with OU part time.

Studying may be something to look into in order to better your prospects?

I'm 44 and not expecting there to even be a state pension by the time I retire.

I fully expect legislation to be bought in to phase it out for higher earners.

I think you could be onto something....

You can't afford to pay £2400 - 3 years N.I. ? yet your partner is a higher rate tax payer - wow !

Luckily you have ( at least )15 working years in front of you.

They can backdate if you cancelled but changed your mind

You are very unlikely to get Pension credit unless you ended up as a single pensioner.

Thanks for pointing that out. Basically many of us are doomed.

They don't OP. NI contributions are what you make when you're working or self employed to pay for your pension. When the kids are 12 the child benefit stops. Call HMRC. They are super helpful. You can buy back added years at any point including near to returement, that would help you save to buy them back as well as getting years in under your belt so you may not have to pay them all