People must work this number of years to receive the full payment of the new state pension when they retire

The latest statistics from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) show that the State Pension currently provides regular financial income for almost 12.7 million older people across the country, including more than one million pensioners living in Scotland. This payment is available to those who have reached the UK Government’s eligible pension age, which is currently 66 for both men and women, and have paid at least 10 years of National Insurance (NI) contributions.

However, many people approaching retirement age may not be aware that they will need around 35 years’ worth of NI contributions to receive their full new state pension payment of £221.20 each week.

This is only an average number of years as some people may have been ‘contracted out’ and will need more NI contributions to qualify for the full amount – more on GOV.UK here.

Workplace and private pensions will help boost the State Pension in retirement, but many people may rely on State Pensions as their only income in retirement, so it’s important to consider how many years you’ll need to pay into NI to get the maximum payout.

The state pension age is due to rise to 67 between 2026 and 2028, with a further planned increase to 68 in the mid-2040s.

If you’re worried about how many years you need to work – if retirement is a long way off or just a few years away – our handy guide below should help you understand how National Insurance contributions affect the amount of State Pension you’ll be paid. .

How to get any new State Pension payment

You will need at least 10 qualifying years on your National Insurance record to qualify none State Pension but it doesn’t have to be 10 consecutive qualifying years.

This means that for 10 years at least one or more of the following conditions apply to you:

• you worked and paid National Insurance contributions

• you received National Insurance credits, for example if you were unemployed, sick, a parent or carer

• you paid voluntary National Insurance contributions

If you lived or worked abroad, you can still get some new state pension.

You may also qualify if you have been paying married women’s or widow’s allowance at a reduced rate – find out more on GOV.UK here.

How to get a full payment of the new state pension

The first thing to understand is the term ‘full’ means the maximum amount of the new state pension that a person can receive.

You will need around 35 qualifying years get the full new state pension if you don’t have a National Insurance record before 6 April 2016 – it can be more if you’ve been ‘contracted out’, find out more here.

People who have contributed between 10 and 35 years are entitled to part of the new state pension, but not the full amount, unless they buy extra years of NI.

Qualifying years if working

You pay National Insurance when you work and get a qualifying year if:

You may not pay National Insurance contributions because you earn less than £242 a week. You can still get a qualifying year if you earn between £123 and £242 a week from one employer – find out more here.

Qualifying years if you are not working

You can get National Insurance credits if you can’t work – for example because of illness or disability, or if you’re a carer or unemployed.

You can get National Insurance credits if you:

• entitlement to child benefit for a child under 12 (or under 16 before 2010)

• get Jobseeker’s Allowance or Employment Support Allowance

• receive care allowance

If you are not working or getting National Insurance credits

You may be able to pay voluntary National Insurance contributions if you are not in one of these groups but want to increase your State Pension. Find out more on the GOV.UK website here.

What if there are gaps in your National Insurance record?

You can have gaps in your NI record and still get the full new state pension. You can get a state pension statement which will tell you how much state pension you can get. You can then request a National Insurance Statement from HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) to check your record for gaps.

If you have gaps in your National Insurance record that would prevent you from getting the full new State Pension, you can:

Check your National Insurance record on GOV.UK here.

Check your state pension age

Check your state pension age to find out when you can retire and claim your state pension using the free online tool on GOV.UK here.

This will tell you:

• when you reach state pension age
• your qualifying age for Pension Credit

We have a dedicated section here for the latest news about the State Pension.

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