National Insurance - can I stop when 'enough' has been paid?
Discussion
As the title says.....
In conversation with a friend the other day, he seemed to think that he could stop paying NI once he had 'paid enough in'. He couldn't give me a categorical amount or period, so my BS meter started twitching.
My understanding is that you pay NI on money you earn from work - different classifications dependent on whether salaried, self employed etc. up until you stop working and retire. i.e. You don't pay NI if you're not working and you only stop paying when you stop working.
Checking my NI payment record it appears that there's a date, about a year before my retirement date, which suggests that's where I stop paying.
Oh PH financial bods - what is gospel here? Can I stop after a finite amount or number of years contributions, or am I doomed to a commitment through to retirement?
In conversation with a friend the other day, he seemed to think that he could stop paying NI once he had 'paid enough in'. He couldn't give me a categorical amount or period, so my BS meter started twitching.
My understanding is that you pay NI on money you earn from work - different classifications dependent on whether salaried, self employed etc. up until you stop working and retire. i.e. You don't pay NI if you're not working and you only stop paying when you stop working.
Checking my NI payment record it appears that there's a date, about a year before my retirement date, which suggests that's where I stop paying.
Oh PH financial bods - what is gospel here? Can I stop after a finite amount or number of years contributions, or am I doomed to a commitment through to retirement?
I suspect confusion lies with minimum lifetime contributions, especially has historically applied to a subset of women that took career breaks to raise children. They can now pay top ups to bring it up to the minimum if they wish. I can see how chinese whispers could lead to a urban legend that there is a maximum as well as a minimum.
I was wondering this too as my retirement age keeps getting pushed back. I'd much rather invest the money in my own SIPP so I can access it before I reach 68 and it would actually allow me to retire earlier. Probably why there is no maximum level as the gov't are pretty open about wanting to keep us working for as long as poss.
I envy the French sometimes.
I envy the French sometimes.
Eric Mc said:
It's not a matter of choice if you work in the UK. The only way to stop paying NI before you reach state pension age is to leave the country.
When my dad hit 65 and planned to carry on working he asked whether he could carry on paying his NI. He was told there was no mechanism to do that, which seemed a bit of a shame! He ended up working for another 10 years.TwigtheWonderkid said:
Eric Mc said:
It's not a matter of choice if you work in the UK. The only way to stop paying NI before you reach state pension age is to leave the country.
Nope. I'm 61, still in the UK, and I don't pay NI. I retired at 58. Rufus Stone said:
Eric Mc said:
It's not a matter of choice if you work in the UK. The only way to stop paying NI before you reach state pension age is to leave the country.
Not sure about that, I haven't pain NI since 1993. 
The key word is "work". Many people live in the UK, have substantial personal incomes and are below state pension age but don't need to pay NI.
If you are working, and under state pension age, and your earnings exceed the NI threshold, you pay NI
Edited by Eric Mc on Thursday 14th December 14:19
Eric Mc said:
Morphine?
The key word is "work". Many people live in the UK, have substantial personal incomes and are below state pension age but don't need to pay NI.
If you are working, and under state pension age, and your earnings exceed the NI threshold, you pay NI
Now you mention the threshold. The key word is "work". Many people live in the UK, have substantial personal incomes and are below state pension age but don't need to pay NI.
If you are working, and under state pension age, and your earnings exceed the NI threshold, you pay NI
Eric Mc said:
And that can be engineered if you have access to dividends. But you need to be careful. HMRC can, if they want to, deem what you thought to be a dividend payment to actually be a salary payment and assess you for the missing NI.
And that doesn't just apply to IR35 situations.
Maybe they can, can't say I've ever heard of them actually doing so though. And that doesn't just apply to IR35 situations.
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