Self-employed Since 2015? Check Your State Pension
If you went self-employed between 2015 and 2024, here is the five-minute check and what to do next.
You paid your tax. Your National Insurance record may still have a gap.
If you went self-employed between 06/04/2015 and 05/04/2024 and you are not sure you ever filed a separate CWF1 form, your State Pension forecast may be smaller than it should be. The difference can run into thousands of pounds over a 20-year retirement. Here is the five-minute check and the one action to take this month.
You went self-employed between 2015 and 2024. You registered for self-assessment. You paid your tax bill on time. You assumed the National Insurance side of things was being handled.
For as many as 800,000 people, it may not have been. HMRC has confirmed this month that self-employed people who registered between 06/04/2015 and 05/04/2024, and did not file the separate CWF1 form telling HMRC about their self-employment, may have wrong gaps in their National Insurance record. That could mean a smaller State Pension when they retire. The difference can run into thousands of pounds over a 20-year retirement.
What went wrong
When you become self-employed in the UK, you do not just register for self-assessment. You also have to tell HMRC separately that you are self-employed, using a form called CWF1. That form triggers the right Class 2 National Insurance contributions being collected, the ones that count towards your State Pension.
If you did not file the CWF1, even if you ticked the self-employment box on your tax return, HMRC may not have collected the Class 2 NI you owed. That leaves gaps in your NI record.
To get the full new State Pension (£241.30 per week, £12,548 per year from April 2026), you need 35 qualifying NI years. A gap of even a few years can mean a smaller pension for life. HMRC says it has now fixed the system from the 2024/25 tax year onwards. The issue only affects people who became self-employed in the previous nine years.
Who is affected
You are likely affected if all three of these are true:
- You became self-employed between 06/04/2015 and 05/04/2024.
- You registered for self-assessment but you are not sure you ever filed a CWF1.
- You have not checked your State Pension forecast in the last 12 months.
You are not in this group if you have always been employed since 2015, registered as self-employed from the 2024/25 tax year onwards, or already filed the CWF1 when you first went self-employed.
Why this changes your retirement number
The numbers
Full new State Pension: £12,548 per year
A 5-year NI gap (typical for this cohort): roughly £1,800 per year lost from your State Pension, every year, for the rest of your retirement.
Over a 20-year retirement: about £36,000 of income you were counting on that may not arrive.
If your Delphina retirement number is £650,000, that £36,000 shortfall could be the difference between retiring at 60 and retiring at 62, assuming your investments do not make up the gap. This is the part of the news that affects your number, not just the policy debate.
The five-minute check
Step 1: Check your State Pension forecast
Go to gov.uk/check-state-pension and sign in with Government Gateway. Look at three numbers:
- Your weekly State Pension amount (should be £241.30 if your record is full)
- Your State Pension age (this is when you start receiving it)
- The years on your NI record, specifically whether it shows the expected number of qualifying years for your age
Step 2: Check your NI record separately
Go to gov.uk/check-national-insurance-record. This view shows every tax year and whether each one is a qualifying year, a gap, or a partial year. Look for years from 2015 onwards that show as gaps.
Step 3: Cross-reference with what you actually did
For any year showing a gap: did you pay Class 2 NI that year? Do you have a Self Assessment tax return for that year showing self-employment income? If yes but the year is missing on your record, that is the CWF1 problem.
Step 4: Do not pay anything yet
HMRC is writing to affected people in stages. If your letter has not arrived, do not pay to fill gaps speculatively. The process for backpayment at the original (lower) rates only applies to people HMRC confirms are caught by this specific issue. Anyone else would pay the much higher standard voluntary contribution rate.
What to do once your letter arrives
HMRC letters are going out in stages:
- At or within two years of State Pension age: letter by summer 2027.
- Everyone else affected: letters start spring 2027.
When yours arrives, it will direct you to DWP. DWP will work out whether filling the gaps is worth it for you, and at what rate. Affected people can backpay to 2015 at the original rates, not today's higher voluntary rates. That is the one genuine upside of this whole mess.
What this means for your Delphina scenario
If your State Pension forecast shows a number below £241.30 per week, update the figure in Delphina today. Your retirement number will recalculate immediately. If you want to keep your original retirement age, you now know the additional monthly contribution you need. If you want to keep the original retirement number, you know how much longer you may need to work.
The one action
Check your State Pension forecast on gov.uk/check-state-pension and write down the weekly amount and the years on your NI record. If the weekly amount is below £241.30 or the qualifying years are short of the expected count for your age, do not pay anything yet. Wait for HMRC's letter, then follow the process in spring 2027. Once you have checked it, update the State Pension figure in your Delphina scenario so your retirement number is no longer over-optimistic.
Related reading
- Carer's Allowance overpayment: are you unknowingly owed £20,000? - a sister DWP-adjacent story. If you also claim Carer's Allowance and earn anything at all, the £204/week earnings limit can trigger a £4,488 overpayment demand for the price of a £52 pay rise. Same broken system, different benefit.
- Gone freelance? Your financial guide - the wider self-employed picture, including pension contributions and tax.
- Am I actually on track financially? - the four numbers that tell you whether your retirement picture is moving in the right direction.
- Average UK pension by age - context for your private pension pot, without treating the median as a verdict.
Sources
- MSE briefing: 800,000 self-employed may be underpaid State Pension (14/07/2026)
- gov.uk: Check your State Pension forecast
- gov.uk: Check your National Insurance record
General information for UK residents. Figures are illustrative. Check your own National Insurance record and State Pension forecast with GOV.UK before acting.