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Contribution comparison · 2026/27

Voluntary National Insurance Calculator: Pension Top-Up

Compare an HMRC top-up quote with the official annual State Pension increase. Include an assumed tax rate and the wait before extra income starts.

Sources checked 4 October 2026

Check free credits first. The quote and pension increase must refer to the same selected gaps. Read the voluntary NI and overseas rules.

Your comparison

Complete the checks before calculating. Keep your official records open in another tab.

Confirm acceptance/cost with HMRC and the selected payment's increase with the official pension service. A visible gap alone is not enough.

For exactly the periods being compared, including any official surcharge. Do not use a generic current-year premium.

Enter only the increase from this payment, not your total pension. For a confirmed zero increase, enter 0.

An editable assumption, not a tax assessment. 0 means no tax deducted from the increase.

Use the start applicable to your official forecast. Enter 0 if the increase starts now; no arrears are assumed.

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The result

A clearer comparison

No personal result yet. Complete the form and select Calculate comparison.

Method and worked example

Annual increase after assumed tax = confirmed gross annual increase × (1 − tax percentage ÷ 100). Simple payback = official quoted cost ÷ that annual increase. Payback starts when the extra pension starts. Add the entered waiting period to illustrate the time from payment.

Worked example with invented figures

A £900 quote and £300 annual increase with assumed 20% tax produce £240 extra yearly income. £900 ÷ £240 = 3.75 years after the increase starts. With a five-year wait, the total illustration is 8.75 years from payment. This is not a current HMRC offer.

Enter an annual increase attributable to the selected payment, not total pension. Keep future employment/contribution assumptions identical when comparing official forecasts. GOV.UK · Check your State Pension forecast.

No upfront tax relief, inflation, uprating, investment return, mortality or means-tested benefit offset is included. The tax rate is an assumption, not an individual tax calculation. Pension instalments can change the precise cash-flow date. A zero or fully taxed increase has no simple payback.

Check credits first, and ask HMRC and the official pension service about the specific payment. This tool does not infer entitlement from years of contributions or resolve the new overseas rules. GOV.UK · Voluntary National Insurance; GOV.UK · Voluntary contributions abroad.

Read the voluntary National Insurance guide.

Pension, social insurance and tax-relief guide · Compare your overall contribution costs.

Official sources and review date

Source-checked on 4 October 2026. Official conditions and your own record take precedence.

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