jessie79 Woodward

Hi, As an UK expat that meets all necessary requirements to pay Class 2 NI contributions apart from "you worked in the UK immediately before leaving", are there any exceptions to this requirement in the event that I was unable to work immediately before leaving the UK because I was raising a young child? It seems that if I had not had my child and was at the time working, I would be eligible to pay class 2 NI contributions now I'm working abroad. The fact that I had a child to support means I am instantly ineligible to pay class 2. Is my understanding correct? Or are these circumstances taken into account? I raise the question because the reality is this. With a child to support now, I am unable to afford to pay for NI contributions for class 3 without having insufficient money to provide for my child. This is not in the best interests of children.