IslandGirl

I posted my CF83 (+ supporting documents) on 26 April from a Post Office in Kent. I used the Royal Mail 1st Class Signed For service. Over 2 weeks later, the tracking still shows that it has not been delivered/signed for by HMRC. I realize that HMRC receives huge amounts of mail. Please can you confirm that letters using special delivery services do actually get signed for upon receipt. Or shall I assume it is lost in transit and send it again? I need proof of receipt (or proof of it being scanned into your system) before the 31 July deadline please.

After weeks of failed attempts to contact DWP, please can HMRC tell me if it is safe to assume that I can use the information contained in my last State Pension forecast (October 2022) to make a voluntary NI contribution? DWP told me that I can pay the 5 years 2017/18 to 2021/22, which will each boost my State Pension by 5.29. Can I go ahead with my payment to HMRC knowing that nothing will have altered in the last 6 months? I know that there are no refunds if you pay the wrong years, so I am wary of paying without getting an update from DWP. However, I cannot carry on spending vast quantities of money on international phone calls, and my letters to them remain unanswered. Please advise.

Thank you, HMRC Admin 32.

For UK citizens who live abroad and want to make a one-time lump sum payment before 31st July for several PAST tax years when National Insurance was not paid, do they need the CF83 form? I have studied this form and many of the sections are not applicable. It appears to be for people abroad who want to set up a direct debit for FUTURE National Insurance payments, but please clarify. Also can my brother in the UK make the lump sum payment on my behalf? I already have my details from DWP, and he will send a cover letter with his cheque. I look forward to your reply. Thank you.

My heartfelt thanks to the recent contributors to this forum. I finally have access to my National Insurance record after literally years of trying to open a Government Gateway account. What a long and frustrating battle it has been to get to this stage! I am a UK citizen who has lived overseas for many years, and therefore do not have a UK postcode, UK credit record, recent P60 or a UK diving licence. After going round in circles for years and never achieving success, I had pretty much given up. However, as I approach my golden years, I decided to see if there had been any recent developments to help Brits living abroad and I found this forum. After reading all the postings, I used the Gov UK ID Check and my UK passport ..... and it worked!! I started off on my PC and then switched to the app on my iphone to scan my passport picture page, the biometric thingy on the front cover and to take the selfie. Now I can finally see which years I was contracted out, and how much National Insurance I need to top-up to ensure a full State Pension when the times comes. Thanks again!