{"id":148930,"date":"2026-03-12T03:40:25","date_gmt":"2026-03-12T03:40:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vale50plus.org\/clone\/four-ways-to-get-national-insurance-credits-without-claiming-benefits\/"},"modified":"2026-03-12T03:40:25","modified_gmt":"2026-03-12T03:40:25","slug":"four-ways-to-get-national-insurance-credits-without-claiming-benefits","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vale50plus.org\/clone\/four-ways-to-get-national-insurance-credits-without-claiming-benefits\/","title":{"rendered":"Four ways to get National Insurance credits without claiming benefits"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div id=\"article-body\">\n<h2 class=\"LeadText_lead-text__wd_PA __className_d0bc02\" data-testid=\"leadtext\">People who aren\u2019t on benefits may still be entitled to some National Insurance credits depending on their circumstances<\/h2>\n<p><button class=\"SlideViewerButton_slide-viewer-button__BDJoG\" aria-label=\"Open image viewer\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\" aria-controls=\"image-lightbox\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-embed__0T8WX ImageEmbed_image-lead__Ti3qQ\" data-testid=\"leadimage\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-articleid=\"33570502\">\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-container__2AIQm\">\n<figure class=\"Figure_figure__Uce4f\" style=\"--figure-aspect-ratio:1.5\"><\/figure>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"ImageCaption_caption__j7HRu\" data-testid=\"image-caption\">\n<p aria-label=\"People can check their National Insurance record and State Pension forecast online\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-title__ccyQU\" data-testid=\"caption-title\">People can check their National Insurance record and State Pension forecast online<cite aria-label=\"Image: GETTY\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-credit__wlx1W\" data-testid=\"caption-credit\">(Image: GETTY)<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<p><\/button><\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Individuals failing to claim the National Insurance credits they are entitled to could find themselves receiving reduced state pension payments. Contrary to common misconception, these credits aren&#8217;t solely available to those claiming specific benefits.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">National Insurance credits can fill gaps in your <a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.gov.uk\/national-insurance-credits\/eligibility\" rel=\"nofollow\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"_self\">National Insurance record<\/a>, which determines your state pension entitlement. Typically, these credits are awarded to individuals receiving certain benefits such as Carer&#8217;s Allowance and Child Benefit, preventing carers from losing state pension rights whilst looking after family members.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Nevertheless, there are four situations where individuals can obtain National Insurance credits without being in receipt of any benefits. Some of these aren&#8217;t awarded automatically, meaning people must claim their entitlement or face the prospect of missing out.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"HeadingTwo_heading-two__4TTeG  __className_59fb3a\">Training courses<\/h2>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Individuals aged 18 or over who have been placed on a government-approved training course by Jobcentre Plus should receive Class 1 National Insurance credits automatically. This only applies if the course duration doesn&#8217;t exceed one year.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Should you be over 18 and attending a government-approved training course lasting no more than one year without being referred by the Jobcentre, you may still qualify for credits but will need to make an application. This requires writing to HMRC, detailing the period for which credits are being claimed and explaining your eligibility.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"HeadingTwo_heading-two__4TTeG  __className_59fb3a\">Jury service<\/h2>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Individuals who are not self-employed and have received a summons for jury service may qualify for National Insurance credits covering their period of court attendance. To obtain these Class 1 credits, you must submit a written application to HMRC.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"HeadingTwo_heading-two__4TTeG  __className_59fb3a\">Partners of people in armed forces<\/h2>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">To potentially qualify for National Insurance credits, you must be married to or in a civil partnership with a member of the armed forces and have accompanied your partner on an overseas deployment.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">For those who departed for their posting after 6 April 2010 and are now back in the UK, Class 1 credits can be requested. If your overseas posting took place after 6 April 1975, you reached state pension age on or after 6 April 2016, and you&#8217;re not receiving Class 1 credits, then you may apply for Class 3 credits as an alternative.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"HeadingTwo_heading-two__4TTeG  __className_59fb3a\">Wrongly imprisoned<\/h2>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">If the Court of Appeal, or Court of Criminal Appeal in Scotland, overturned your conviction, you&#8217;re eligible to apply for Class 1 credits. You must contact HMRC in writing, providing your National Insurance number alongside an explanation of your eligibility.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Information regarding the application process and submission locations for these credits is available on the Gov.uk website.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Class 1 National Insurance credits contribute towards additional benefits such as Jobseeker&#8217;s Allowance as well as your state pension. Class 3 National Insurance credits exclusively contribute towards your state pension qualification.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">You can review your National Insurance record and state pension forecast <a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.gov.uk\/national-insurance-credits\/eligibility\" rel=\"nofollow\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"_self\">online <\/a>to identify any gaps that could be filled with credits, and to verify that any credits you&#8217;ve requested have been correctly applied.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.walesonline.co.uk\/news\/cost-of-living\/four-ways-national-insurance-credits-33570475\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>People who aren\u2019t on benefits may still be entitled to some National Insurance credits depending on their circumstances People can check their National Insurance record and State Pension forecast online(Image:&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":148931,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","episode_type":"","audio_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/i2-prod.walesonline.co.uk\/article33570502.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s1200f\/0_Person-using-a-laptop.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[25,29],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-148930","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-housing-news","category-recentpost"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i2-prod.walesonline.co.uk\/article33570502.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s1200f\/0_Person-using-a-laptop.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":true,"date":"2026-09-12 03:40:25","action":"change-status","newStatus":"trash","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vale50plus.org\/clone\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/148930","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vale50plus.org\/clone\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vale50plus.org\/clone\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vale50plus.org\/clone\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vale50plus.org\/clone\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=148930"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/vale50plus.org\/clone\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/148930\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vale50plus.org\/clone\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/148931"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vale50plus.org\/clone\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=148930"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vale50plus.org\/clone\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=148930"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vale50plus.org\/clone\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=148930"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}