The 35-Year Rule: How the New State Pension Works
The new State Pension was introduced on 6 April 2016 and applies to anyone reaching State Pension age on or after that date. To receive the full new State Pension, you need 35 qualifying years on your National Insurance (NI) record. For the 2026/27 tax year, the full new State Pension is £230.25 per week, which works out to around £11,973 per year.
A qualifying year is a tax year (running from 6 April to 5 April) in which you have paid or been credited with enough National Insurance contributions. You do not need 35 consecutive years – they can be spread across your entire working life.
If you have fewer than 35 qualifying years but at least 10, you will receive a proportional amount. For example, if you have 20 qualifying years, you would receive 20/35ths of the full amount. With fewer than 10 qualifying years, you will not qualify for any new State Pension at all.
How Much State Pension Will You Get?
The amount of State Pension you receive depends directly on the number of qualifying years on your NI record. Here is a breakdown showing how your pension builds with each qualifying year:
| Qualifying Years | Weekly Amount | Annual Amount | % of Full Pension |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 (minimum) | £65.79 | £3,421 | 29% |
| 15 | £98.68 | £5,131 | 43% |
| 20 | £131.57 | £6,842 | 57% |
| 25 | £164.46 | £8,552 | 71% |
| 30 | £197.36 | £10,263 | 86% |
| 35 (full) | £230.25 | £11,973 | 100% |
What Counts as a Qualifying Year?
A qualifying year is built up in several ways. You do not have to be in paid employment for the entire year – in fact, there are many situations where you can earn qualifying years without working at all.
Paid National Insurance Contributions
If you are employed, you pay Class 1 National Insurance contributions through the PAYE system. For the 2026/27 tax year, you start paying NI when you earn more than £12,570 per year (the primary threshold). A full qualifying year is recorded automatically once your earnings cross this threshold.
If you are self-employed, you pay Class 2 NI contributions (currently £3.45 per week) and Class 4 contributions on profits above £12,570. Class 2 contributions count towards your qualifying years.
National Insurance Credits
NI credits are awarded automatically in certain circumstances and count towards qualifying years just like paid contributions. You may receive credits if you are:
- Claiming Child Benefit for a child under 12 (or receiving Specified Adult Childcare credits)
- Receiving Carer’s Allowance for looking after someone for at least 20 hours per week
- Claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance or Employment and Support Allowance
- Receiving Universal Credit (depending on your circumstances)
- On jury service or receiving certain other state benefits
Voluntary Contributions
If you have gaps in your NI record, you may be able to fill them by paying voluntary Class 3 NI contributions. For the 2026/27 tax year, Class 3 contributions cost £17.45 per week (£907.40 per year). This can be an extremely good investment if it adds a qualifying year to your record, as the additional State Pension gained far exceeds the cost within a few years.
For more detail on whether buying missing years is worthwhile, see our dedicated guide: Can I buy missing NI years?
The Starting Amount: What About Pre-2016 Contributions?
When the new State Pension was introduced in April 2016, HMRC calculated a “starting amount” for everyone who had already been paying NI. This starting amount was the higher of:
- What you would have received under the old State Pension system (basic State Pension plus any Additional State Pension or SERPS)
- What you would have received under the new State Pension rules applied to your existing NI record
If your starting amount was less than the full new State Pension, you could build it up to the full amount by adding more qualifying years after 5 April 2016. If it was already equal to or more than the full amount, your State Pension was essentially locked in at the higher figure (known as a “protected payment”).
Checking Your NI Record
The best way to find out how many qualifying years you have is to check your National Insurance record online. You can do this through the Check Your NI Record service on GOV.UK.
Your record will show:
- The total number of qualifying years you have
- Any years that are not full (and the reason why)
- Any gaps that you may be able to fill with voluntary contributions
- How many more years you may need before reaching State Pension age
You can also request a State Pension forecast which will tell you exactly how much State Pension you are currently on track to receive.
What If You Have Gaps in Your Record?
Gaps in your NI record can occur for many reasons: taking time off work to raise children (without claiming Child Benefit), living abroad, earning below the NI threshold, or simply being between jobs. Not all gaps matter – you only need 35 qualifying years, and most people have a working life of around 49 years (from age 18 to State Pension age of 67), so there is room for some gaps.
However, if you are approaching State Pension age and your forecast shows you will fall short of the full amount, filling gaps can be very cost-effective. For each year you buy at £907.40, you could gain an extra £6.58 per week (£342 per year) for the rest of your life.
Special Situations
If You Reached State Pension Age Before 6 April 2016
The old basic State Pension required 30 qualifying years for the full amount (not 35). If you reached State Pension age before April 2016, the old rules apply to you. The full basic State Pension for 2026/27 is £176.45 per week. You may also have built up Additional State Pension (SERPS or S2P) on top of this.
If You Were Contracted Out
If you were contracted out of the Additional State Pension (through a workplace pension scheme), your starting amount will reflect this. Contracting out means you paid lower NI contributions, so your State Pension calculation includes a deduction. You may need more qualifying years after 2016 to make up for this. Read more in our contracted out guide.
If You Have Lived or Worked Abroad
Time spent working abroad may or may not count towards your UK State Pension, depending on the country. The UK has social security agreements with many countries that allow your overseas contributions to count. See our guide on State Pension if you lived or worked abroad for full details.
How to Maximise Your State Pension
Here are the practical steps you can take to ensure you get the highest possible State Pension:
- Check your NI record – Use the GOV.UK service to see how many qualifying years you have and identify any gaps
- Get a State Pension forecast – Find out exactly how much you are on track to receive
- Claim NI credits – Make sure you are claiming Child Benefit, Carer’s Allowance, or other qualifying benefits
- Consider voluntary contributions – If you have gaps, calculate whether paying Class 3 contributions is worthwhile
- Consider deferring – If you can afford to delay claiming, deferring your State Pension increases it by about 5.8% for every year you defer
State Pension Age: When Will You Get It?
The State Pension age is currently 66 and is rising to 67 between 2026 and 2028. There are plans to increase it further to 68 in the future. You can check your own State Pension age using the calculator on GOV.UK or read our guide on State Pension age.
Remember, reaching State Pension age does not mean you have to stop working. If you continue working beyond State Pension age, you no longer pay National Insurance contributions, but your State Pension will not increase further once you have 35 qualifying years (unless you choose to defer it).