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I run a limited company, and want to pay myself a wage. There is a limit to what you can pay yourself before the company has to pay National Insurance contributions. But what is the minimum wage you can pay yourself in order to get a Qualifying Year on your National Insurance record (for State Pension purposes)?

marktristan
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jon
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1 Answers1

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The gov.uk website makes this very difficult to find out, so your question is understandable.

For an employee, if you're earning a wage of more than £166 a week (2019/20) you will pay Class 1 National Insurance contributions (12% on the amount above that). Carry these on for a full year and that should make one Qualifying Year.[1]

However – if you earn between £118 and £166 a week, although you don't actually pay Class 1s, your contributions are treated as having been paid to protect your National Insurance record. [2][3]

So the short answer is £118 a week, or £6,136 a year.

The only true way to know whether you have a Qualifying Year is to check your own National Insurance record after the fact, and you can make voluntary contributions to 'top up' if you have not quite made enough for a Qualifying Year.

There is a lot more information on qualifying here – including conditions for whether or not you have an NI record before 2016: https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/articles/understanding-and-qualifying-new-state-pension

marktristan
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