I agree with Rebs. You need to have 35 years of NI contributions AT THE FULL RATE in order to qualify for the £144 per week.

See pages 9 and 10 of the fact sheet:-


https://www.gov.uk/government/upload...fact-sheet.pdf

I am still confused in the example on pg 10 it refers to the guy being aged 32 and how he can make additional NI contributions in order to increase his foundation amount and end up with the £144 pension at retirement age. In the case of us that have been contracted out from the beginning and are now retired with pensions, but not state pension retirement age, then what one presumes they just get less than £144 but how much less??? and what about the fact that in my case I have already paid 7 more years NI than the 35 qualifying years. I suppose I will just as normal get what I get and get on with it.

Yes, that is the part that is not clear to me... it would have been useful if they had included an example of someone much nearer to retirement age in that situation.

What is not clear to me is how that 'foundation amount' is calculated.

Very confusing surely if as in the example pg 10 you can increase the foundation amount by making additional contributions then the extra ones we have already made should count? maybe they do.

By the way my wife got an email reply re her request for a pension forecast to be told not doing them currently and that you have to apply for a NI contribution record.

I think they will - I think they will do a calculation using all of your current contributions which will become your 'foundation amount'. You may find you have enough to meet the 35 qualifying years, but I don't know.

some more on here but clear as mud to me
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/ni/intro/check-record.htm#3

I have read that and may be wrong.

In some ways that makes it worse as it only effects the private sector whilst yet again the public sector are protected.

wow it's a minefield - I'm just trying to get my head around all this. I already have 42 qualifying years in. Under the old rules for which I had a Pension forecast last year I would have been entitled to (in 2020) £102.15 p.w. plus Additional State pension of £14 p.w. plus Graduated Retirement benefit of £0.95 p.w. (£117.10)
Now it will be £144 plus roughly an extra £4 p.w. for every year over the 35 qualifying years till I'm 66....which would mean an extra £4p.w. x16(years) So £64 plus £144 total £208 p.w. (lol that sounds mad 0 )
But if I leave for Aus next year they'll freeze it so I'll just get £144 plus the extra years since I passed the 35 qualifying years (so 43 years!)so the extra £4 p.w x8 instead of 16 which is £32 plus the £ 144 = £176 !!!!!!!!!!

confused or what! I followed the instructions for he calculation, but I think it's probably too much for my brain... I might just ring for another forecast!

In what way are the public sector protected? will they not be treated in the same way if they have been contracted out?

If you think not, do you have any links to support that?

I don't think that part is correct...

If you look at the factsheet it says the following...

What if my foundation amount is equal to the full single tier?
• If your foundation amount is equal to the full single-tier amount, this is what you
will get at your State Pension age. It will not increase, even if further qualifying
years are added to your National Insurance record.

I take that to mean, if you reach the max, then even if you are contributing for further years, you won't be adding any more qualifying years... therefore, I don't think you can be adding you £4 per year in your example.

the way I read it they will just say by getting £144 you are gaining end of that's what you will get. As for a new pension forecast per the email my wife got they are not doing them currently (no doubt because of the changes) but you can get your contribution record

That's my understanding as well. If you are currently entitled ( with Serps etc) to less than £144, then you will get £144 (assuming you have not been contracted out), but if you are currently entitled to more (say £154 I.e. £110 basic plus £44 Serps) then that's what you will get. (£154)

I've been contracted out for as long as its been in existence, so I am assuming that I will just receive the amount I would receive if I was paid it now (I.e the current basic pension £110 )

Thanks for that both...I was looking at this...but you're probably right!!

What if my foundation amount is
more than the full single tier?
•
Under the Government proposals, if your
foundation amount is higher than the full
level of the single-tier
pension you will get the extr
a amount as a separate
protected payment. This will be paid on
top of the full singl
e-tier pension.
•
This means that your st
ate pension will not be lower than the state pension you
would have got under the current schem
e, based on your National Insurance
record when single tier starts.

Wouldn't the example be based on him working until the future retirement age of 67? I think that's what they are basing it on - someone who will be 32 in 2016 when the "single tier" pension is introduced would have that retirement age.

I agree, though, that there's no clear information in there to illustrate how someone who has been contracted out for many years and does not have the opportunity to make enough NI contributions at the full rate to build up more entitlement (either because they're already retired or still working but too close to retirement age) will be affected. More by design than by accident, I suspect.