Key Post UK State Pension - Make voluntary contributions to qualify for UK pension on top of Irish pension

My record was only partially updated for a while like you, kevgaa, then it updated fully a few months later. No need to ring.
 
I am new to the thread and have set the uk government id today ,thanks to help on here, and my record shows I have 3 full years contributions back in the 80s/90s.
Firstly thanks to all the contributors for all the help / info.
I have 2 questions :
1) in relation to the uk the state pension the main difference between class 3 and class 2 is that class 2 is cheaper but you must have been working immediately before you left. is that correct?
2) do I need to do fill in form cf83 for every job i had in Ireland after i came back ? I think not - they just care about first job i think. Am i correct ?
Thanks a lot
 
Thanks @magscollins and @picorette
Just to return to my query. Can anyone give a view on the two questions in bold?
I have worked in UK for 4 years from 1988 to 1991 and Ireland for 34 years in 1984/85 and from 1991 to present. I am 58 now. I bought back years of pension in uk with voluntary contributions which brings me up to 26 years in UK. If I continue to work in ireland and pay voluntary contributions in uk I should have 40 years of service in ireland and 34 years in UK. Will I get a full pension in both countries on this basis?

If i stopped at 60 I will be a bit short in both countries, say 36 years in ireland and 28 years in uk. Will I get a pro rata pension from both countries, for instance 36/40 in ireland and 28/35 in uk or what is your view on this?
 
You will not receive any pension payment until age 66, 67 in UK.
At age 60, Assuming you were class A, and have at least 520 contributions, you can retire, claim 9 months of job seekers benefit, then sign on for credits untill age 66, and these will get you the same Irish pension as before. Will probably work till 66 for UK voluntary contributions as well but I am not certain.
 
1) in relation to the uk the state pension the main difference between class 3 and class 2 is that class 2 is cheaper but you must have been working immediately before you left. is that correct? Yes, I think so or you could be on maternity leave, sick leave or claiming unemployment.
2) do I need to do fill in form cf83 for every job i had in Ireland after i came back ? I think not - they just care about first job i think. Am i correct ? The will want to know your full employment history as years you are working will be treated as being at Class 2 and years not working will be at Class 3. Even if you worked for part of a year for which you want to make voluntary contributions they will probably be at class 2
Thanks a lot
@52andout
 
I will be turning 66 in the coming months and have bought back years on my UK pension. All this is confirmed on my Gov.uk account. However, I don't have any correspondence from them yet saying when I will receive my first payment. I recently filled out an Application form for my Irish state pension and received a confirmation letter detailing my payment from my 66th birthday.

Do I need to also apply for the UK pension payment or will this be triggered automatically ?
 
I was 66 middle of last year and at the time my record of additional payments had not been updated, that happenedin October. I applied for my UK pension about six weeks before my BD. Initially i got paid the old forecasted rate but now i get the full rate. It just takes time to get all the paperwork updated and agencies in line with each other.
 
I lived in the UK for appro 2.5 years. I worked for 1.5years before attending college. Once I finished my course I returned home to ireland. As soon as I moved back to Ireland, I took up employment and have remained in continuous work since.

When I applied to pay voluntary National Insurance contributions, I was assessed under Class 3. I appealed this decision, hoping to qualify for Class 2, as I had only one year where I was not working. Unfortunately, I just received a letter stating that my application for Class 2 was refused because I was not in employment immediately before leaving the UK.

Is there any way around this? I had hoped that I could pay Class 3 for the year I was in university and qualify for Class 2 for the rest.

I'm really disappointed with the outcome. Now, I’ll have to pay just under £14,000 upfront and approximately £800 per year going forward. At 45, it feels like a significant financial risk. Of course, if all goes well and I remain in good health until retirement, it’s an obvious choice. I just had hoped to qualify for Class 2, as now I need to take out a loan to cover the cost.
 
Thanks everyone for your replies and help.

After further research on threads here and the International Pension Centre (UK) website, it seems I can fill out a form (20 pages) called "International Pensions Direct Payment" to activate my UK pension payments. However, this form is for a "way of paying your pension or benefit direct to an account of your choice outside the UK" - As I have already paid my back years through a Sterling account that I have kept open since I left the UK in the 90s, I am happy to have my pension payments paid into that same Sterling account.

I'll try to call the Pension Help Centre to find out my best option. I know I can be on hold for a while but the staff are usually very helpful when you make contact in my experience.
 
@Missbettieboo - if you don't qualify for Class 2, you don't qualify. I have applied and have my fingers crossed myself however in the event it's Class 3 I'll definitely be taking out that loan and considering myself lucky. Our situation from state pension age would be:

Mr Bilbot: Both UK and Irish SP
Mrs Bilbot: DB pension plus Irish SP

We are also both maxed out on AVCs with 340k between us. Plan is that if the next 10 or so years brings c. 8% growth per annum we can retire at 55-56 based on the fact that the total of state pensions will be enough to cover us for the slow go years.

I'll absolutely take out a loan to pay Class 3 if I have to. The fact that I won't need to account for a 30-40 year time span means early retirement is possible and even at the higher price you're effectively purchasing an annuity worth 250k. Don't be down heartened.
 
Hi everyone,

Thanks for such a great thread. The advice has been invaluable.
I only sent off my online CF83 form on the 22/01/25. I am a bit anxious that I have left this too late and I won't be able to complete the process before the April deadline.

How long should I expect to wait to get a reply?

Will I have to have my back payments paid by the April deadline?

Many thanks
 
I applied on the 3/2 and it states online that I should expect a reply in June. Once your application is in they will honour payments even if they are beyond the April deadline apparently.
 
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