PRSI D, A, Contributions abroad and pension

I have posted previously but now have more details. My husband has just taken an actuarial reduced pension from a semi-state where he paid a D stamp. He is age 60 and the pension is less than the current old age pension so not very good. He hopes to gain employment and pay an A stamp. I want to have an idea of how many years he needs to pay an A stamp to get a reduced state pension. Our plan would be to go to Australia in 2 years' time so he would only be able to get these 2 years (if he can get a job) as A stamps

Started work in 1983/84 and will be 66 in 2029.

A Stamps = 180
Reckonable credited contributions for pension = 181 (not sure if these count to the 520 or not)
D stamp = 1227

Other information
UK - has six reckonable years so I am pursuing buying back years there.
Spain - has 5 or 6 years of self-employed contributions
Australia - worked 10 months and paid tax

Mixed rate pension - As I am hoping he will get a UK pension of some sort this will rule out getting a mixed rate pension as per the rules. Is this correct?

Using contributions from Spain - he would not be entitled to a pension from Spain as they require 15 years. If he did not have the 10 years in Ireland he would not be entitled. If he did not have ten years between the two countries would he get anything?

Credits conversion - I understand that if he gets an A stamp now he can convert this year's and the previous year's D contributions into A but I am unclear about whether they will count towards the 520 contributions required.

On another note - should he be signing for credits now (I presume they would not count as the previous stamp is D)? He did go to a social welfare office but was told he had to have a public service card in order to apply. When he got that and went back to the office he was told he had to apply online. I think this is wrong as not everyone has a computer or is computer literate. He hates doing anything online!

This whole area is very complex and I would love to talk to an expert on this. The aim is to ensure we maximise what he is entitled to within the next two years.
Any advice is appreciated.

partnership said:

I think this is wrong as not everyone has a computer or is computer literate

Click to expand...

I agree. I was told this year that it would be quicker and easier online, and to be fair it was, but not that I couldn't apply in person as I was doing. I think you should bite the bullet and do it with him.
Some tips:
Have his phone handy as when you log in to MyWelfare using Mygov they will text you a code for confirmation. Once onto MyWelfare page click on apply online for Jobseekers.
Take snaps of any documents they require on your phone and email them to yourself/him. Then save locally and load them into the application as required. This saves on Scanning/Printing.

Change of status credits or any other credits don't count for the requirement to have 520 full rate paid contributions.
The maximum extra paid contributions that he could achieve by age 66 is 312.
So a total of 492 which is short of target. I don't know if any foreign contributions are counted.

elcato said:

I agree. I was told this year that it would be quicker and easier online, and to be fair it was, but not that I couldn't apply in person as I was doing. I think you should bite the bullet and do it with him.
Some tips:
Have his phone handy as when you log in to MyWelfare using Mygov they will text you a code for confirmation. Once onto MyWelfare page click on apply online for Jobseekers.
Take snaps of any documents they require on your phone and email them to yourself/him. Then save locally and load them into the application as required. This saves on Scanning/Printing.

Click to expand...

If you have a smart phone you can download an app like Tiny Scanner that can "scan" a document using your phone's camera. (No affiliation to the app developer I have just found it useful esp where I needed to scan signed documents.)

On the subject of the relevance of social insurance contributions made abroad, may I suggest that the OP pours herself a large G & T (or a chilled Prosecco if she prefers), brings it to a quiet room and reads this long and informative link:


Here's the Introduction, just to whet your appetite:

"Ireland has social security arrangements with other countries that allow you to combine social insurance contributions that you have paid in Ireland with social insurance contributions that you have paid in another country. This can help you to qualify for a social insurance payment in Ireland or in a country with whom Ireland has a social security arrangement.
The social security arrangements that Ireland has with other countries can be divided broadly into two groups:

• European Union (EU) regulations
• Bilateral social security agreements

Click to expand...

and so on. It's exciting stuff!

Marsupial said:

On the subject of the relevance of social insurance contributions made abroad, may I suggest that the OP pours herself a large G & T (or a chilled Prosecco if she prefers), brings it to a quiet room and reads this long and informative link:

Combining social insurance contributions from abroad

Combining social insurance contributions paid in Ireland and abroad can help you qualify for a social welfare payment. Find out more.

www.citizensinformation.ie

Here's the Introduction, just to whet your appetite:



and so on. It's exciting stuff!

Click to expand...

It's OK have already read this and the stuff on eu website. They only combine to see what you would have got if all irish then do notional calculation on your irish ones. What isn't clear is what happens if you don't have the 520 when combined to do calculation.

partnership said:

It's OK have already read this and the stuff on eu website. They only combine to see what you would have got if all irish then do notional calculation on your irish ones. What isn't clear is what happens if you don't have the 520 when combined to do calculation.

Click to expand...

If someone doesn't have a total of 520 reckonable paid contributions even when their Irish ones are combined with their overseas ones, then it seems pretty obvious that they're not going to be eligible for the SCP.

If he works for one week and get a class A prsi contribution, he could then make voluntary prsi contributions for that year and then extra future years, based on class A, to increase his Irish paid contributions level. He can then add his Spanish paid contributions to these to reach the 520 needed. It would cost him 500 euro per year.

Do the 520 have to be paid or do credits or voluntary contributions count

He can make voluntary Prsi payments provided he already has 520 paid contributions.
These can include paid class D. He has over 500 pf these so he qualifies. He needs to get voluntary contributions based on class A. The voluntary contributions are based on his last paid contribution. If he gets one paid class A contribution before he starts the voluntary contributions he will get V1 voluntary contributions.
His current 180 class A contributions + any V1 contributions will count towards the 520 full rate contributions he needs. Credits are only counted after reaching the 520 full rate paid contributions level.
If he decides to do this he can also sign on for class A credits. These may or may not be of benefit to him, but as they don't cost anything he has nothing to loose. If for example you delayed your departure to Australia for a few years the credits could allow him to qualify for treatment benefits.
He is allowed to make voluntary contributions and claim credits at the same time.