Just hours left to boost your state pension by up to £330 a year ahead of deadline tonight
THOUSANDS of workers have just hours left to boost their state pension by up to tens of thousands of pounds over their retirement.
Today is the final day savers can top up their National Insurance (NI) record dating back to 2006 in order to boost the amount of state pension they receive.
You need 35 NI years to get the full new state pension, worth £221.20 a week or over £11,502 a year, and ten years to get anything at all.
If you have any gaps in your record, you can pay to fill them in to boost your pension amount.
But normally you can only buy back the past six tax years.
Until today, the government has had a temporary extension in place to allow people to top up back to 2006, potentially boosting their income in retirement by thousands of pounds.
Anyone who has had career breaks, worked abroad, been self-employed, or spent years in low-paid jobs may have gaps in their NI record.
Even if you’ve already started claiming your state pension, you could still top it up, so it’s worth checking before the deadline.
However, before paying, check whether you could fill the gaps in for free first.
Helen Morrissey, head of retirement analysis at Hargreaves Lansdown, explained: “If you qualified for benefits such as Jobseeker’s Allowance or Child Benefit, you may be able to backdate a claim.
“These benefits come with NI credits, so you could fill the gaps for free.”
You can find out who’s eligible for these credits at www.gov.uk/national-insurance-credits/eligibility.
If you do want to pay to top your record up, the first step is to check your state pension forecast.
You can do this easily online using the government’s “Check your State Pension” tool at www.gov.uk/check-state-pension.
You can also use the free HMRC app. To access your forecast, log in with your Personal Tax Account details. You can register on the gov.uk site if you don’t have an account.
You can then view any missing years that you’re able to buy back, as well as how much you could get for topping up. You can then pay for these online, without needing to call.
However, you can call the Future Pension Centre on 0800 731 0175 if you need help or advice.
If you’re already receiving your State Pension, you can’t use the online service – call the Pension Service on 0800 731 0469, but be aware that as the deadline is today phone lines may be busy.
Be sure to request a callback by April 5 if you can’t get through on the phone.
Tom Selby, public policy director at AJ Bell, said: “As long as you request a call back by the April 5 deadline, the government will honour any requests to fill gaps from 2006 onwards.”
How else can I boost my state pension?
You can get NI credits to fill in your NI record automatically if you’re a parent claiming Child Benefit for a child under 12.
Grandparents who look after children can also get the credits if the parent passes them to you.
Go to gov.uk/national-insurance-credits/eligibility to find out more.
You could also boost your income by delaying when you start taking state pension.
For every nine weeks you delay, your pension increases by 1%. That’s a boost of 5.8% more per year.
If you are on a very low income, claiming Pension Credit tops up your state pension.
Check if you qualify at gov.uk/pension-credit/eligibility.
Crucial to claim Pension Credit if you can
HUNDREDS of thousands of pensioners are missing out on Pension Credit.
The Sun’s Assistant Consumer Editor Lana Clements explains why it’s imperative to apply for the benefit..
Pension Credit is designed to top up the income of the UK’s poorest pensioners.
In itself the payment is a vital lifeline for older people with little income.
It will take weekly income up to to £218.15 if you’re single or joint income to £332.95.
Yet, an estimated 800,000 don’t claim this support. Not only are they missing on this cash, but far more extra support that is unlocked when claiming Pension Credit.
With the winter fuel payment – worth up to £300 now being restricted to pensioners claiming Pension Credit – it’s more important than ever to claim the benefit if you can.
Pension Credit also opens up help with housing costs, council tax or heating bills and even a free TV licence if you are 75 or older.
All this extra support can make a huge difference to the quality of life for a struggling pensioner.
It’s not difficult to apply for Pension Credit, you can do it up to four months before you reach state pension age through the government website or by calling 0800 99 1234.
You’ll just need your National Insurance number, as well as information about income, savings and investments.