Have you topped up a UK pension to cover gaps?

[Brissy1]

Things are looking promising, mrsB received a text (after waiting 8 months) requesting she call uk. Phoned tonight and he confirmed a few details and advised that she has 5 years, is eligible for catch-up, and to complete CF83 form importantly to note on it that she had registered interest prior to deadline.
Don't know how 5 years was recorded, only worked for about 3 years in the 1980s.
After leaving UK she worked for some years before marrying a wonderful man so stopped working, so...

I gather that catch-up rates are class 2 for years when working, then class 3? And one can't catch-up all the years since leaving UK?

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Things are looking promising, mrsB received a text (after waiting 8 months) requesting she call uk. Phoned tonight and he confirmed a few details and advised that she has 5 years, is eligible for catch-up, and to complete CF83 form importantly to note on it that she had registered interest prior to deadline.
Don't know how 5 years was recorded, only worked for about 3 years in the 1980s.
After leaving UK she worked for some years before marrying a wonderful man so stopped working, so...

I gather that catch-up rates are class 2 for years when working, then class 3? And one can't catch-up all the years since leaving UK?

You can catch up all the years since leaving the UK. Correct… class 2 while working and 3 when not.

They seem to count part years… which is likely how they got to 5 when you’d really been there 3. Mine was likewise 2 years higher than I had originally calculated.

 

[SydneySwan]

You can catch up all the years since leaving the UK. Correct… class 2 while working and 3 when not.

My bolding - it depends. Certainly not the case if you left in the 1980s as per @Brissy1 post.

 

[Brissy1]

You can catch up all the years since leaving the UK. Correct… class 2 while working and 3 when not.

They seem to count part years… which is likely how they got to 5 when you’d really been there 3. Mine was likewise 2 years higher than I had originally calculated.

Thanks. UK guy said that she has 5 years and can top-up 19 years, although she left UK 36 years ago. A distant thought is that you can only catch-up since some date after 2000, or am I imagining that? He also said that continuing contributions for another 2 years until she's entitled to the pension, giving her 26 instead of 24 years, would increase her weekly pension from £130pw to £160pw. That extra £1000pa for extra 2 years contribution doesn't seem right. Maybe those figures are fortnightly not pw.

Long way to go yet, still to submit CF83 so not counting my chickens...

 

[andye]

Thanks. UK guy said that she has 5 years and can top-up 19 years, although she left UK 36 years ago. A distant thought is that you can only catch-up since some date after 2000, or am I imagining that? He also said that continuing contributions for another 2 years until she's entitled to the pension, giving her 26 instead of 24 years, would increase her weekly pension from £130pw to £160pw. That extra £1000pa for extra 2 years contribution doesn't seem right. Maybe those figures are fortnightly not pw.

Long way to go yet, still to submit CF83 so not counting my chickens...

The ability to retrospectively top up more than five years was closed off last year. You can probably add current year to make 6.
As above, class 2s will cease next April (I'm not 100% sure if this applies to the retropective ones)

 

[Brissy1]

My bolding - it depends. Certainly not the case if you left in the 1980s as per @Brissy1 post.

Ah thanks that explains some of what UK guy said

 

[Brissy1]

The ability to retrospectively top up more than five years was closed off last year.

I think that's why he said to ensure that when completing CF83 form, important to note on it that she had registered interest prior to deadline. But she'll be chuffed getting even the minimum £ into her UK bank. All to be spent when visiting the Old Dart. Still chickens...
I think you started this thread Andye, if anything comes through she (and many others here) owe you a pint.

 

[andye]

...
I think you started this thread Andye, if anything comes through she (and many others here) owe you a pint.

Credit for starting goes to @FlyingFiona but glad so many have benefited.

 

[Brissy1]

They seem to count part years… which is likely how they got to 5 when you’d really been there 3. Mine was likewise 2 years higher than I had originally calculated.

Have now sorted out login. The Gateway shows only have 2 years (from the 1980s) not 4 years as was told on the phone, and eligible to catch up last 6 years (which hopefully will be extended when submitted CF83, and still young enough to pay 2 years in the future). So probably no problem getting to 10+ years contribution but will that, alone, ensure eligibility for the "pension" if only 2 of those years were from salary deduction in the UK? Bit of a concern that may pay 8+ years catch-up and still not eligible!

Mel_Traveller , I presume your Gatway reflects the extra 2 years over what you originally calculated?

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Have now sorted out login. The Gateway shows only have 2 years (from the 1980s) not 4 years as was told on the phone, and eligible to catch up last 6 years (which hopefully will be extended when submitted CF83, and still young enough to pay 2 years in the future). So probably no problem getting to 10+ years contribution but will that, alone, ensure eligibility for the "pension" if only 2 of those years were from salary deduction in the UK? Bit of a concern that may pay 8+ years catch-up and still not eligible!

Mel_Traveller , I presume your Gatway reflects the extra 2 years over what you originally calculated?

The initial calculation had all my full years, and then the book-end years were also showing as part years, but ‘eligible’ for the purpose of the 10 yr minimum to get the pension.

I think now I’ve topped up to 22 years or something, which will be fine for me. The other years were payable, but I would have been about $10k out of pocket.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

I paid late June. Rang them early July - they’d received the money.

Called yesterday… yup, the money is there, they just haven’t got around to allocating it yet!

So for anyone still waiting, looks like it could be up to 7 months - or more.

They’ve now asked a case worker to allocate my payment so should be in the next two-three weeks.

 

[Rebus]

I paid late June. Rang them early July - they’d received the money.

Called yesterday… yup, the money is there, they just haven’t got around to allocating it yet!

So for anyone still waiting, looks like it could be up to 7 months - or more.

They’ve now asked a case worker to allocate my payment so should be in the next two-three weeks.

There seems to be no rhyme nor reason to how long it takes to allocate payments to your NI record. I made a back-payment in February last year which was allocated to my record in around 8 weeks. A mate made his around the same time and is still in the same position as you despite making numerous phone calls.

 

[GiggsAbroad]

An update for the process from my end… I made the payment in early October last year based on what was outlined on the response letter from my CF83 application. I rang the week after I made the payment and explained which years they were to allocate it to – this seemed to go all fine. I randomly checked my account via the HMRC app in mid-Nov to find that it had been allocated. However, all expected years except 1 were now showing as 'Full Year' with the earliest year that I was also expecting to show as a Full Year was saying 'Year is Not Full' and that I was short 2 weeks payment. I rang the NI Helpline and asked them what had happened, and their explanation was that they had incorrectly advised me of the correct Class 2 amount that I was required to pay on 2 of the 13 years that I was back-paying. Seems in those 2 tax years (2009 and 2015 for me) there should be 53 weeks of payments (because every 5 to 6 years there is a 53rd week), however this was not outlined on my letter and I’ve ended up missing 2 weeks worth of Class 2 payments which, when allocated backwards has meant I’m missing 2 weeks on my earliest back-payment year (2007). To resolve this – and I’ve just received another letter in the post outlining my payment shortfall – I now need to pay another £6.30 to ensure that 2007 is classified as a Full Year.

 

[Growing Older]

Another data point for those who are still waiting for something (anything?) from DWP and HMRC...

I requested a callback in March 2025 before the 5th April deadline. I received one callback in June 2025 where I had to provide my DOB and NI number, nothing more. The caller told me that the Future Pensions Centre would call me. Nothing happened, so I filled out the CF83 form, sent it off, got approved at Class 2 for all the back years and then paid them. They got allocated in 2 batches over the following 2 months without any follow-up on my part.

DWP called me last Friday (let's call it 10 months since the initial request). I spoke with a lovely Geordie lady who asked how she could help me and I had to tell her somewhat sheepishly that I'd done it all myself and was now sorted. She said that she would take my name off the list but that they were still working through a monster backlog.

So if you are still waiting for a callback or allocations or anything in between, it appears that process is still working - but as slow as treacle!

FWIW - my written assessment from HMRC did show leap years with a slightly higher Class 2 NIC amount due, so I wasn't inconvenienced there like the previous poster.