Financial expert Martin Lewis has urged Britons approaching retirement age to review their National Insurance records, warning that failing to fill contribution gaps could mean losing out on thousands of pounds in state pension payments. He explained that in some cases, voluntarily topping up missing years could be \u201cvery lucrative\u201d, but cautioned that this option is not suitable for everyone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The reminder comes as the window to backdate National Insurance contributions as far as the 2006\/2007 tax year closes in April 2025. After this deadline, people will only be able to buy contributions from the past six years, meaning some could soon lose the opportunity to significantly increase their retirement income.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to the BBC podcast, Lewis discussed the issue on his weekly podcast after a listener shared how he had managed to dramatically increase his pension <\/a>entitlement by purchasing missing National Insurance years. The man previously had just nine years of contributions, one short of the minimum ten required to qualify for any state pension. To receive the full new state pension, currently \u00a3230.25 <\/strong>per week, an individual typically needs 35 qualifying years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Payments are expected to rise by 4.8 percent next April under the government\u2019s triple lock policy, bringing the full rate to \u00a3241.30 <\/strong>a week, or \u00a312,547.60<\/strong> per year. The listener had been able to take advantage of a temporary scheme allowing voluntary payments to cover missing years dating back to 2006, something that will no longer be possible after April 2025.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Lewis estimated that the individual had paid between \u00a310,000 and \u00a315,000 to purchase 18 additional years of contributions. In return, this would boost their weekly state pension by about \u00a3120, or around \u00a36,000 annually. \u201cLet\u2019s say you live 20 years from your pension age, which would be a typical life expectancy<\/em>,\u201d Lewis explained. \u201cThat\u2019s \u00a3120,000 and that is inflation-proofed because of the triple lock<\/em>,\u201d he said according to his comments reported across multiple outlets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Such an example highlights how filling contribution gaps can offer long-term financial rewards. Yet Lewis also stressed that voluntary payments are not a one-size-fits-all solution and that individuals should check their records carefully before committing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The extended deadline, introduced to ease the transition from the old state pension to the new system, will end in April 2025. According to Lewis, after this date, people will revert to the standard rule allowing back payments for only the past six tax years. This makes the coming months critical for those who may have significant gaps in their National Insurance<\/a> history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Lewis emphasised that the scheme\u2019s value depends on personal circumstances. \u201cIf you are missing years in the last six years, it is worth checking and doing the maths<\/em>,\u201d he said. He recommended that those uncertain about their eligibility <\/strong>consult official online guides to determine whether buying extra years is worthwhile. The financial adviser warned that while top-ups can be rewarding, they are not universally beneficial and require careful consideration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The ability to make voluntary contributions has provided many with a lifeline to secure a higher income in retirement, particularly for those who spent time out of the workforce or were self-employed. Yet with the 2025 deadline approaching, Lewis\u2019s advice serves as both a reminder and a warning: the chance to significantly boost one\u2019s pension entitlement through older backdated contributions is soon coming to an end.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Financial expert Martin Lewis has sounded the alarm over a fast-approaching pension deadline. He says a simple check could help thousands secure a much larger retirement income.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":116133,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[45],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-116131","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-retirement","generate-columns","tablet-grid-50","mobile-grid-100","grid-parent","grid-33","no-featured-image-padding"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/116131","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=116131"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/116131\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":116134,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/116131\/revisions\/116134"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/116133"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=116131"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=116131"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=116131"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}April 2025 Marks the End of Extended Top-up Rules<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n