Early retirement and NI contributions

Yes

tim

Good. Thanks for the reassuring reply.

In message , DaveD writes

Yes. I retired at 58, and underwent the degrading interviews until I had enough "stamps", even though I didn't get unemployment benefit because of my modest company pension. It was belt-tightening stuff for 7 years until the pension arrived, but I never regretted it.

Yes, and I think I'm right in saying that, even if you didn't have enough contributions to qualify for a full pension, you would be credited with contributions when over 60 and not working, so you *still* may qualify without having to pay any more.

If in doubt, you can always ask for a pension forecast - which predicts what pension you will get after taking account of your contribution record and your current status.

In the unlikely event that that says that you *don't* qualify, think carefully before making any top-up payments because it is seldom cost-effective.

I don't agree.

It is very cost effective if it is actually necessary to recover the lost years in question.

Though with the decrease in number of years required for a full pension, it is less likely to actually require any specific year to be paid.

tim

In message , Roger Mills writes

Yes. At 60 to 64, if you're working, you have to pay your normal NI. If you're not working, the NI contributions are, in effect, paid for you. At 65+, even if you're still working, you don't pay NI.

"Roger Mills" wrote

Whatever gives you that idea?

In message , Ian Jackson writes

You still need to have paid a certain number of contributions before age

1. The rules have changed recently, so I don't know how many are required for a full pension.

Isn't it before you're 65 (when you would normally get your pension)? "Number of qualifying years Men Women If you reach State Pension age before 6 April 2010 - men normally 44, women normally 39. If you reach State Pension age on or after 6 April 2010 - men 30, women

Yes. It was 44. However, they're increasing the pension age to 66 then to 67, so (it the government are lucky), you'll die before you get to pension age, so they won't need the 44 years contributions.

Maybe it's changed, but when I last did the calculations - a few years ago - you would have to live to a ripe old age before the extra pension you bought caught up with the cost of buying it.

"Roger Mills" wrote

The following suggests it could be just 4 years to 'catch up'...

Can't remember exactly - as I said, it was a few years ago and the rules may have changed in the meantime.

I know that, in my wife's case, it wasn't worth topping up her pension (she had worked part-time and only paid contributions at the married womens' rate - if at all) because she could get far more based on my contributions as soon as I reached 65 - but maybe I was wrong to generalise.