Can You Count on It?

If you are close to reaching your state pension age it is important for you to know what you can expect to make plans for your future. Older people often rely on their pensions and other benefits as because of health problems it is impossible for them to go back to employment.

Mainly, there is a Basic State Pension which you can get once you have reached your retirement age. However, to get the Basic State Pension you must make National Insurance contributions.
But, you can get credits for National Insurance from unemployment, sickness or as a parent or if you have been paying voluntary National Insurance contributions.

Besides, you can get National Insurance Credits for the time when you were receiving Child Benefit for children under 12 years old, Jobseekers' Allowance or Employment and Support Allowance.

The maximum you can get is £168.60 per week. To get the maximum amount you need 30 qualifying years. So, if you have ten years of contributions you will get one third of the amount.

It does not seem like a lot. But, if you are not eligible for State Pension or you are not getting maximum amount, you can get a 'top up' to £75.50 per week through your spouse's National Insurance contributions.

Another thing you may want to know is that you don not have to claim your pension when you reach your state pension age. You can defer claiming your pension and once you start receiving it you will get a higher amount. So, the longer you wait with applying the higher amount of state pension you will get.

In conclusion, if you have got enough years of National Insurance Contributions, through employment or benefits, you can get your State Pension. But, you have to wait till you reach the right age.






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