In this article
Your eligibility for the state pension is based on your age (currently, you qualify at 66) as well as how many years’ worth of National Insurance contributions you’ve paid or have been credited.
These are known as ‘qualifying years.’ You need at least 10 qualifying years to receive any state pension, and 35 years to receive the maximum amount (£241.30 a week in 2026-27).
They don’t have to be consecutive years.
Whether you’re unsure if you have enough to retire, or are already accessing your savings, our money guidance service can talk you through your options. Which? Money members get unlimited access to them via phone.
Find out moreYou may have gaps or part years in your National Insurance (NI) record for a number of reasons - for example, because you've taken a break from work to raise your children or have lived abroad for a while.
Fortunately, you have the option to fill any gaps in your NI history, which could result in you receiving higher state pension payments throughout your retirement
You can make up one or more qualifying years by paying voluntary contributions - known as Class 3 contributions. If you're self-employed, you'll pay voluntary Class 2 contributions, which are cheaper.
You can’t pay to increase your state pension beyond its full level.
The cost of buying voluntary Class 3 National Insurance contributions depends on the year you’re looking to fill in.
For 2025-26, the rate is £17.75 for a week of missing contributions. It would cost you £923 to cover the full year. The rate for 2026-27 is £18.40 a week.
For 2023-24 and 2024-25, the rate is £17.45 a week (£907.40 a year).
If you’re self-employed, it’s cheaper to top up your state pension as you’ll pay voluntary Class 2 NI contributions, rather than Class 3.
Class 2 contributions for 2025-26 cost £3.50 a week (£182 a year). The rate for 2026-27 is £3.65 a week.
You can usually only fill gaps in your NI record from the past six years. The deadline for making voluntary contributions is 5 April each year.
So you have until 5 April 2027 to fill gaps for the 2020-21 tax year.
Not any more. The six-year rule was temporarily relaxed, allowing you to pay voluntary contributions to make up for gaps between April 2006 and April 2016.
But the deadline for doing so passed on 5 April 2025.
Filling in a missing year will usually boost your state pension by 1/35th of the standard rate. That works out at £6.89 a week, or about £359 a year, based on the full level of state pension in 2026-27.
Over a 20-year retirement, that would add up to an extra £7,180 – all in exchange for a payment of just £923 (based on the cost of filling a gap in Class 3 contributions for 2025-26).
This means it would take you less than three years for you to earn your money back after topping up (even less if you're self-employed, as Class 2 voluntary contributions are cheaper), so in many cases it's very worthwhile.
However, there are various scenarios where buying voluntary NI contributions might not be beneficial - for example, if you were ‘contracted out’ of the additional state pension before 2016.
This meant you paid a lower rate of NI (and therefore received a lower state pension) in exchange for a higher contribution to your private pension.
If you’re likely to be on a low income in retirement, pension credit could give you a financial boost without you needing to pay for voluntary NI contributions.
Make every penny count. Get the best deals, avoid scams and grow your savings, with expert guidance for only £49 a year.
Join Which? MoneyYou can find out if you have any missing or incomplete National Insurance qualifying years - and how much they'll cost to fill - at gov.uk.
There's no point buying missing years if you're already set to get a full state pension.
Before paying voluntary NI contributions, make sure that you’re getting any NI credits you’re entitled to.
These count towards your state pension entitlement in the same way as ordinary NI contributions but don’t cost you anything.
You might be eligible if you’re caring for a child as a parent or grandparent, claiming statutory sick pay or looking after a sick or disabled person.
You can pay Class 3 contributions via the government's online tool. You'll need to sign in using your Government Gateway details or register for a new account.
You can't use this service if you are self-employed, have lived or worked abroad or are over state pension age.
If you’re not yet at state pension age, you can contact the Future Pension Centre on 0800 731 0175. If you’ve already reached state pension age, contact the Pension Service on 0800 731 0469.