State pension: Government extends National Insurance top-up contribution deadline

The Financial Times has reported that ministers have now decided to delay a decision on the state pension until after the next general election, expected in little over a year’s time

The government has confirmed the deadline for filling gaps in state pension National Insurance (NI) contribution records will be extended from 5 April 2023 to 31 July this year

The April deadline applied to back payments from 2006, but concerns had been raised people were struggling to get through to jammed HMRC phonelines.

The update has appeared on the Gov.uk website Taxpayers given more time for voluntary National Insurance contributions and via a written ministerial statement.

Tom Selby, head of retirement policy at AJ Bell, said: “Extending the deadline for Brits to pay voluntary National Insurance contributions to boost their state pension entitlement is a pragmatic and welcome step by the government.

“Thousands of people taking advantage of transitional measures established as part of reforms introduced in 2016 could increase their state pension income by hundreds of pounds a year. But with the original deadline less than a month away, a surge in the number of calls to HMRC led to the real risk of people being caught in a telephone logjam and missing out as a result.

“That would have been a PR disaster for the DWP and inevitably have led to claims for compensation. Today’s announcement should help ease the strain on the government’s phone lines and will hopefully provide sufficient leeway to ensure anyone who wants to pay voluntary NI going back to 2006 is able to do so.

“If you are considering paying voluntary NI it is vital you think carefully about the decision, as while it will be a savvy move for some, it will not benefit everyone. Before parting with any cash, contact the government’s Future Pension Centre, who should be able to tell you whether or not paying voluntary NI will increase your state pension entitlement.”

Becky O’Connor, director of public affairs of PensionBee, said: “This extension was vital so that people did not miss out on the chance to increase their State Pension, through no fault of their own.

“HMRC had been inundated with requests from people spurred on to find out if they could fill gaps in their National Insurance record and the Government also presumably needs this extra time to process a higher than usual volume of enquiries.

“Given the importance of the State Pension to retirement income, people need every chance they can get to boost it and many will have been unaware that they could do this until recently.”