Check your pension forecast
You can check how much State Pension you will receive by accessing your online personal tax account. It will tell you how many years of National Insurance Contributions (NIC) you have made and if there are any gaps in your NIC record.
You need 35 full years to get the full State Pension, but will get some State Pension if you have 10 complete NIC years. You can make up gaps in your NIC record over the last six years by paying voluntary class 3 NIC at £15 per week. If you are self-employed you can pay Class 2 NIC at £3 per week, even if your profits are below the threshold where you have to pay Class 2 NIC.