Jon Greer, head of retirement policy at Quilter comments on the 5 April deadline for people to make voluntary contributions to fill gaps in their National Insurance records :
“There is now just one month left for people to make voluntary National Insurance (NI) contributions to fill historic gaps in their NI record dated back to the 2006/07 tax year.
“Recent figures from HMRC showed that more than 68,000 years of missing NI had been filled by 37,000 individuals since its digital service was launched last year, injecting £35 million into their future retirement income. This high level of uptake reiterates the importance of this scheme as from April 2025, contributions can only be backdated by the usual six years, which could be the difference of thousands of pounds in state pension entitlement. Checking your eligibility ahead of the 5 April deadline will be vital for those in their late 40s, 50s and 60s. Some top ups have resulted in a weekly pension increase of as much as £113.76, equating to an annual increase of £5,915.92. This means that in some cases, paying to fill gaps now could translate into greatly improved pension income and therefore better financial wellbeing in retirement.
“Before making a payment, you should check your NI record using the ‘State Pension forecast’ on the gov.uk website to understand your current state pension entitlement. If you are not predicted to receive the full amount, you should investigate any potential gaps and fill them if you can. Not everyone will benefit from paying voluntary contributions, so it’s vital to also contact the Future Pension Centre on 0800 7310175. They can provide personalised advice on whether paying extra will increase your entitlement. It might be one of the most beneficial calls you make in planning for your retirement.”
