Published: 13/06/2023 By Hannah Duncan
HMRC have extended the NI top up deadline again - from 31st July 2023 to 5th April 2025, that's almost 2 years to get yourself up to date!By making a voluntary contribution to any gaps within your National Insurance record (April 2006 - April 2017) you could increase your State Pension entitlement. Our blog on Pay missing National Insurance before the tax year is up explains that previous top ups used to be capped at 6 tax years but at present this is being back dated until the 2006/7 tax year which is an additional 10 years. Originally, HMRC set the deadline to 5th April 2023, but then gave people a further extension until 31st July 2023, due to the extremely high volume of calls and people not being able to get through to make the required voluntary top up payments. However, HMRC have now extended this even further to 5th April 2025 giving tax payers even longer to calculate if any additional payments are needed.
You can see how much State Pension you are forecast to receive on the government website here; our blog on 'Pay missing National Insurance before the tax year is up' has examples as well as further details as to why you may need to make an additional payment to your NI account. Note that it is dependent on each individual circumstance, you will need to take into consideration how many more full years of paying NI contributions you have left as a tax payer. We always suggest seeking advice, but if you are nearing pension age it should be straight forward to establish if you need to make any voluntary NI payments to ensure you are guaranteed a full state pension. If you are say, over 45 years old and you have gaps in your NI record but are prepared to work the remaining required number of years to qualify for a full state pension, topping up may not be the right option for you.
With the new extension in place, people will have more time to check their records and fully assess if making a top up is necessary for their individual situation rather than rushing and making unnecessary payments. Read our other blog on Extended time to get those extra NI payments in or get in touch by calling 020 8661 7878 or email advice@turpinba.co.uk for further advice and guidance.