National Insurance credits fill gaps in your State Pension record when you are not paying in, for example while ill, caring or registered for Child Benefit.
Many readers want to know whether a year spent raising children or looking after a relative still counts. It can, but it depends on what was claimed at the time. If child-rearing or caring years leave your record muddled, an FCA-authorised adviser rings back at no cost once you complete the brief form on this page.
Which National Insurance credits count towards a full State Pension?
There are two kinds that matter, and GOV.UK separates them clearly. Class 1 credits "count towards your State Pension and may help you qualify for some other benefits, for example New Style Jobseeker’s Allowance". Class 3 credits "count towards your State Pension only". For the State Pension itself, the class makes no difference to whether the year counts.
A year with credits can be a qualifying year. GOV.UK lists "getting national insurance credits for example if you were unemployed, ill or a parent or carer" as one of the ways to earn one, alongside working and paying National Insurance, or paying voluntary contributions.
If your record started after April 2016, GOV.UK says you will need 35 qualifying years for the full rate of the new State Pension. If you were contracted out before then, you will usually need more than 35. The minimum number of years and how a part-full record is paid are covered in the State Pension guide and the State Pension rate.
Who gets National Insurance credits for the State Pension automatically?
Some situations bring credits with no application. The list below follows GOV.UK’s eligibility guide for the main groups.
| Your situation | Credits | How |
|---|---|---|
| Jobseeker’s Allowance, and not in education or working 16 hours or more a week | Class 1 | Automatic |
| Employment and Support Allowance | Class 1 | Automatic |
| Maternity Allowance | Class 1 | Automatic |
| Carer’s Allowance (Carer Support Payment in Scotland) | Class 1 | Automatic |
| Universal Credit | Class 3 | Automatic |
| Registered for Child Benefit for a child under 12 | Class 3 | Automatic, even if you do not receive the payment |
| Unemployed and looking for work, but not on Jobseeker’s Allowance | Class 1 | Contact your local Jobcentre |
| Statutory Sick Pay without enough earnings to make a qualifying year | Class 1 | Apply to HMRC |
The same guide covers further groups, such as people on certain government-approved training, jury service and partners of armed forces personnel posted overseas. For the last, HMRC distinguishes postings after 6 April 2010 from earlier ones, so check the guide against your dates.
A married woman paying reduced rate National Insurance usually cannot get credits. For Universal Credit claimants, how Class 3 credits work on Universal Credit has more detail.
Do Child Benefit credits count, and can a spouse have mine?
Yes to both, with conditions. Registering for Child Benefit for a child under 12 brings Class 3 credits automatically, whether or not you receive the money. That matters if you or your partner opted out of payments because of the High Income Child Benefit Charge: HMRC says you are "still registered for Child Benefit" and the credits are kept.
Credits can be moved between partners. GOV.UK says you can "transfer your credits that you got from registering for Child Benefit to your spouse or partner who is living with you if you have paid a year’s National Insurance contributions". Transfers are applied for on HMRC’s form CF411A, the form parents and carers use to claim or transfer Class 3 credits.
The rules before 6 April 2010 were different. Then the protection was called Home Responsibilities Protection, for a child under 16, and a parent who did not receive it automatically can still claim it. Whether a particular year was covered is something your record shows.
A grandparent or other eligible family member who has cared for a child under 12 since 6 April 2011 can apply for Specified Adult Childcare credits on form CA9176. They must have been 16 or over and under State Pension age when they gave the care, and the parent getting Child Benefit must not need the credit and must agree to transfer it. HMRC allows only one credit for each Child Benefit claim, however many children are on it, and if nobody claimed Child Benefit there is nothing to transfer.
Years of childcare can be hard to untangle later. A call-back request in the enquiry form here brings an adviser who can place those years alongside your other retirement income.
Carer’s Allowance, Carer’s Credit and other carers
If you are paid Carer’s Allowance, Class 1 credits come automatically. If you care for at least 20 hours a week but do not get that allowance, Carer’s Credit is the one to ask about. GOV.UK says your income, savings or investments will not affect eligibility for it, and breaks of up to 12 weeks in a row do not end it. You must be 16 or over and under State Pension age. The person you look after should normally receive one of the benefits GOV.UK lists, for example Attendance Allowance or Personal Independence Payment’s daily living part; where they get none of them, a health or social care professional can sign the care certificate in your application.
Foster carers, and kinship carers in Scotland, can apply for Class 3 credits too, using the same HMRC form CF411A, with supporting evidence.
Checking your record and fixing missing credits
Credits show on your National Insurance record. If you applied and they are wrong, GOV.UK says to contact the office where you applied, and you can ask for mandatory reconsideration if you disagree with a decision. The next stage, paying voluntary contributions for what credits cannot cover, is in topping up your State Pension.
Whether a past year can still be credited depends on the rule for that credit, so ask HMRC about yours. To see what your record means for your own State Pension, get a free State Pension forecast.
Credits and the State Pension: your questions
Do Class 1 and Class 3 credits both count for a full State Pension?
Both count towards the State Pension. Class 3 credits count towards it only, while Class 1 credits can also help with some other benefits.
Is a spouse entitled to State Pension credits in the same way?
Being married does not earn credits by itself. Your Child Benefit credits can pass to a spouse or partner who lives with you, as long as you have already paid a qualifying year’s contributions yourself. For rights built on a spouse’s own record, see claiming State Pension from a spouse’s record.
Do I still get credits if I opted out of Child Benefit payments?
Yes, if you stayed registered. HMRC says opting out of payments leaves you still registered, and registered parents of a child under 12 get Class 3 credits automatically.
Can I get Carer’s Credit if I am already on the State Pension?
Not for time after you reach State Pension age, because GOV.UK lists being under that age as a condition of Carer’s Credit. Carer’s Allowance after State Pension age is a separate question.
How do I tell if credits are missing from my record?
Check your National Insurance record online, then ask HMRC if a year you expect is absent. If gaps remain, an adviser can discuss which matter most when you request a call-back.