only if it is male/male or female/female partnerships
if it is a male/female partnership then it doesn't count as it isn't a legal commitment which can only come about through Marriage.

`

they can register as pareja de hecho though - a lot of couples I know have done that & then the partner benefits

in my region you have to be able to prove that you've been together a year, but that varies a bit from region to region apparently

I know that in Spain you both get the benefits but do the DWP recognise pareja de hecho as they are the ones that issue the S1 forms?

good question Fred, as most people will be coming here from UK and not have the "benefits" of having worked and paid in Spain.

ISTR this came up a little while ago in a very contentious thread in PDT, where the blunt answer was "if you are hetrosexual then you HAVE to get married", which for some people is not the answer

How long you get out of an S1 depends principally on when you apply for it. S1's also run for fixed periods based on a year beginning in December and ending in January.

Entitlement to an S1 at all is determined by your NI record over the previous 2 full UK tax years, if it is sufficient then you will be entitled to an S1 which runs from the time you apply for it to the January of the next but one year. In other words if you applied in January 2013 it would run until January 2015. If you applied in say May 2013 though it would still expire in January 2015 and so on. The minimum you can possibly get then if you have timed it badly is one year.

The extra 1/2 year may be granted depending on your NI contributions in the tax year in which you apply, if you have paid the minimum, which I think is 23 weeks but don't quote me, you can have 6 months tagged on but only to the start because to get that you would have to be applying 23 weeks or so into the current tax year, so in about July say, and it would run until January 2016. Any later than that and the expired portion of 2013 will be deducted from the 2 years meaning that it would expire in January 2015 as expected.

Timing then is crucial and if you want to take advantage of the 2.5 year possibility then best to talk to DWP and get the exact details, please don't rely on this post !!!!

An important point to note is that the S1 clock starts ticking when you cease paying NI not just from when you actually apply for it.

That is a brilliant informative post thank you.

Many thanks Im_and_Er. I may have to rethink my early retirement dates! It will take some figuring out for dates as it seems complicated. I just assumed if I retired 2 years early I would get the 2 years cover.
Thanks for the info
Regards Steve

Tebo, you also need to nail every point very precisely with Newcastle. I timed my retirement with their help for after the 6th January of this year. They told me I would be entitled to 2 years and two months cover from the date of my retirement which was January 31st. I too had paid Nat Ins for 40 plus years.
When i rang them to get the annual S1 extension, they informed me that as I was now retired, it was no longer issued by HMRC but DWP, who have different rules. My health cover would expire December 31st this year, and they may, barring any changes to the rules, extend then to the end December 2014. They will not extend beyond that.
Try to get everything in writing - very difficult, as they take months to answer letters, if they answer at all. I do not think anyone there has a clue what they are doing - perhaps because every one you speak to works for a different body with different rules. -DWP, HMRC, Nat Health, Overseas Healthcare - and probably the tea lady too.
For my first year in Spain, they refused to issue cover at all - even though I was paying National Insurance in the UK. When they realised they were wrong, they were very apologetic, but I was still out of pocket for a years private health cover for us both in the meantime. They are an absolute shower.
Good luck

some wise words there.
when my "pre-retirement" S1 came through (without any problems) and it had expired a couple of months before my retirement date I phoned DWP - whose letter accompanied it to discuss the extension cover.
The guy I spoke to told me he had never issued me with one - and he should know, as he was the only person who did S1's.
So waited a week and phoned up again and spoke to a nice lady who sent me the extension.
I eventually received the permanant S1 a couple of weeks after getting my pension letter, but luckily have not had any dealings with that rude civil servant again.

So, having read Im_and_Er's excellent explanation about the P1 at post 20 several times, can I assume that if I apply for the S1 at end of October 2014 (Which will be 2 years before official retirement date of 26 October 2016) then it will run out Jan 2016? which will be 10 months to early!! So, trying to work it out, what is the best month to apply so it will last until October 2016? So sorry if I sound a bit thick on this one
Regards

you could assume that but mine expired end of Sept 4 weeks before my birthday

Correct.

If you apply in October 2014 that S1 year will expire in January 2015 and then you will have the 2nd year taking you to January 2016.

To keep S1 cover until you receive your state pension in October 2016 then you would have to delay applying until December 2015 and thus get the full 2 years out of it..

I really don't understand why UK operate this fixed year system, it does seem unnecessary and unfair. It might make some sense if it tallied with the UK tax year but it doesn't.

Good point by Bigglesworth by the way, HMRC deal with S1's for those living abroad but still working in UK and paying NI, for them there there is a so called 'workers S1' which runs for 12 months at a time and is renewable indefinitely on it's anniversary. It's only after that that DWP take over and issue what is correctly termed a residual S1.

Is this what you meant.

Yes, apologies.

If you bear in mind that S1's always expire in January and you need or want cover up to a particular point in time then you can work it back from that.

Thanks very much everybody. You've cleared up a lot of confusing points between you all, especially Im_and_Er. Looks like retiring Dec 2014 for me then :-) Just a couple of months extra at work than expected! but hay ho that's life.
Regards for now.