Individuals are being urged to act fast, with a looming deadline regarding the state pension and National Insurance top-ups. If missed, people could miss out on income potentially worth thousands.
Under the normal rules, people can only fill gaps in their National Insurance record from the last six years.
However, if a person reached or will reach state pension age after April 6, 2016, there is a temporary exception.
These individuals currently have the chance to fill in the gaps in their National Insurance record all the way back to 2006.
This means for those with gaps in their National Insurance record, there is a potential opportunity to pay approximately £800 to cover a full year of contributions.
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This would add roughly £275 per year to a person’s state pension, and could be a good opportunity to offer extra money in retirement.
If a person spent 20 years in retirement, this would mean an additional £5,500 of additional state pension income, Standard Life said.
Anyone with gaps now has more time to decide whether to fill these, as the Government has extended the payment deadline.
Britons now have until July 31, 2023 to take action to help increase the amount they receive in state pension.
Victoria Atkins, financial secretary to the Treasury, weighed in on the deadline extension.
She said: “We’ve listened to concerned members of the public and have acted.
“We recognise how important state pensions are for retired individuals, which is why we are giving people more time to fill any gaps in their National Insurance record to help bolster their entitlement.”
Many people are making a rush to top-up their state pension according to the latest data.
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There has been a 123 percent increase in searches for the Department of Work and Pensions, according to Standard Life.
In addition, an increase of 3,000 percent was recorded in search for the Future Pension Centre.
Dean Butler, managing director for customer at Standard Life, said: “A growing realisation that a special window to top-up state pension payments was closing drove a huge volume of searches in February.
“The volumes were such that the Government extended its initial deadline from April to July in order to let people take advantage of a potentially very significant boost to their retirement incomes.
“There are billions of unclaimed, dormant or lost pension plans in the UK.
“With the pensions dashboard still some way from landing, it looks as though significant numbers of people are taking matters into their own hands and tracking down lost pots.”
However, people should be aware voluntary contributions do not always increase one’s state pension.
Those below the state pension age are encouraged to contact the Future Pension Centre to find out if they will benefit.
The Pension Service can be contacted by those who have already reached state pension age.
The Government stresses some people may also want to get financial advice before deciding to make voluntary contributions.
