35 years for full state pension.

[NebulousWhistler]

Evening. Any pension experts around? I’m in my 40s and have 24 years of NI contributions under my belt. I assumed I had another 11 to go to be eligible for the full state pension, but the HMRC website (or maybe DWP? (Either way it’s the same link as my tax return), when I log in, shows all of my contributions (24 years) and says I only have 3 years to go until I’m eligible for a full state pension. Which won’t actually be payable until the 2040s.

My question is, I suppose, how am I eligible for a full state pension with only 27 years of NI credits. Am a bit baffled. Have never been self employed or overpaid into NI (not sure if it’s even possible). I am a high earner but don’t see how that could be relevant, could it?

Did you go to uni?

It’s probably because you paid into SERPs/the second state pension at some point. I’m 49 and have had the full qualifying years for quite a few years. The thing is that you will end up worse off than if you did get the second state pension. My dad gets quite a bit more than the “new” state pension amount despite never being a high earner. That’s due to his SERPS pension.

I don't think that's relevant in the UK unless you covered yourself with voluntary NI payments (class 2s??) while at university, and that option is kept very quiet. Or worked through university years and paid NI.

It should all show up in a NI contributions record statement anyway.

And to add, DH is 48, didn’t start work until 19 and he has the full qualifying years too. Due to all the years he paid into SERPs/the second state pension when he worked for companies that didn’t offer pensions (before it was the law to provide a company pension).

Did you have time off with children? I think you can get up to 12 years per child if you are claiming child benefit if you’re not working?

Mine doesn’t tell me how many years to go? Just says ‘full year’ from when I was 16 and got my first part time job until now. How will I know if I’ve paid enough? Or doesn’t full year mean I have?

The 35 years is only for those who started paying in 2016. The rest of us, who knows the logic of it as it is totally random and even people born only a year apart can need to pay in for a very different number of years.
Sounds like you are really lucky, but I would check every year to make sure it hasn’t changed.

I’m in my 40s and when I checked recently only have a few years to go as it seemed to count p/t work in high school and whilst at university.

It's not 'totally random' at all - it's dependent on whether (and for how long for) you were contracted in or out prior to 2016. everyone had a 'starting amount calculated when the new state pension was introduced in 2016, which will depend on the individuals circumstances - it was the higher of what they would have been entitled to under the old and new rules. Contracting in and out was done away with as part of the new State Pension introduction, and every NI year since then adds 1/35th of the new State Pension amount to the starting amount.

Those who had been contracted out (and therefore paid a lower rate of NI) generally had a lower starting amount and so need more years to get up to the new maximum Those who had been contracted in and therefore built up sone SERPS / S2P over the basic amount generally had a higher starting amount and so need fewer years to reach the maximum.

The OP is presumably in the latter category. If they are and they intend to carry on working, they're not 'really lucky', as they will have to carry on paying NI until they stop working, even after they've reached the maximum nSP amount.

Possibilities: Credits for claiming child benefit. Credits for claiming other benefits, ESA carers etc. Credits for two years in sixth form. Nothing for Uni unless you worked enough to pay NI at the same time. Credits for working in Europe and paying into equivalent system (if paperwork done correctly).

IIRC there is a link that shows all your years and contributions-for example I have university and child benefit years when I wasn’t working which count.

I had very similar calculation in my case. 35 years only applies to those who started contributing after 2016

It doesn't make much difference as you don't get any more pension for more than the 35 years of contribution.

As long as the website projects you to receive the full state pension amount I'd not give it a second thought.

I'm 56 and I have one more year to contribute to my state pension. I've worked from 18 apart from uni when I was 22-26.

FWIW, I’m self employed and my accountant warned me to pay my NI even after my record showed I was over the qualifying years, because some of his clients were having problems getting their full pension. He didn’t go into details.

Yes but not in the UK. I was a “foreign national” when I moved here in the early noughties, but got a UK passport a couple of years later due to having been born in the UK.

I have no idea what SERPS is but I’ll google it. After the reading all of the answers below, this sounds likely.

I did have a couple of years off with children but incorrectly never claimed CB because my husband is also a high earner so assumed I wouldn’t be eligible. I wasn’t aware that I should have applied anyway, not taken the cash element but had the govt continue to pay NI contributions. So I have NI gaps however given I now seem to have only 3 years to go before being entitled to the full pension, it seems moot anyway since I plan to work for the next 5 years anyway.

SERPS/S2P: I’ve always worked for corporates and had a non-contributory pension at all of these firms.
Is SERPS still relevant in my case?
Are there any good websites that can help (mumsnet aside!)?
Either way I’m not complaining. Ideally I’d like to retire in 5 years, but suspect it’ll be closer to ten. Think NI also covers NHS so I don’t feel too hard done by if I’m still paying it, even if I have maxed out on the state pension. My curiosity was really about the 27 years thing as I’m sure it said something different when I checked a couple of years back. I’ve taken a screenshot this time!

I had been credited with 35 years when I was 51. It added full years from when I turned 16.

Ask on the Martin Lewis forum in the pension part. Upload your screen shot with person information redacted. You will get knowledgeable answers on there.

There isn’t much information about it. I suspect that’s on purpose as HMRC don’t want people to realise that they have been conned out of additional pension that they paid contributions for. People who weren’t contracted out paid more national insurance but will end up with the same pension as people who were contracted out. Yes, you can get to your qualifying years quicker but that means nothing. I reached my qualifying years about five years ago when I was 44 but I won’t be able to claim my state pension for at least 24 years after that. Will probably be more if they increase the pension age to 70.

Getting all your years credited for NI for your full pension, means you can choose to take a couple of years out, or even retire early, so I do think it is lucky to be paid up early

You can only retire early if you have a private pension. I won’t be able to take my private pension until 57 and I wouldn’t be suprised if that increases if the state pension age increases again. So that will mean that I have paid an extra 15 years minimum even if I retire early (based on having full contributions by 44).

@AudiobookListenercan you say more about credits for working in Europe? I worked in an EU country for a couple of years and paid into their social security system more than 20 years ago. When I moved back I contacted a couple of people to see if I could get the credits transferred and nobody seemed to know so I gave up. It would be good if those years could be credited though.