NI contribution

angelaand3

Good afternoon, please could someone advise me? I have spina bifida, a stoma and am a full time wheelchair user. I work 3 days a week but am struggling with this. My husband died 15 years ago when my daughter was 2 so I receive widows parents allowance and will do until the end of August 2025.
i know that I am not entitled to new style esa while receiving this benefit but I’m not sure if I can carry on working until this time.
I know that I have to have paid enough NI contributions to receive new style esa but if I was to give up working this year would I then be eligible to claim esa next August or do I have to have been receiving NI contributions right before I put my esa claim in?
I have worked since I was 16 and am now 50 if that makes any difference.
Thank you in advance.

Albus_Scope

Hi there @angelaand3 and welcome to the community.

I'm afraid I don't have the answer to your question, but I wanted to stop in and say a quick hi. Hopefully one of our super smart regulars will be along soon with the advice you need. 😊

angelaand3

Thank you Albus

poppy123456

If you make a claim for New style ESA from August next year then the tax years that count will be 2022/23 and 2023/24. You can see the qualifying conditions for this here https://www.entitledto.co.uk/help/employment-and-support-allowance-contribution-based

I would say depending on when you actually finish work would depend on whether you would qualify but you should. I would advise getting some expert advice from an agency near you because NI contributions is not my strong point, despite my benefits knowledge.

There would also be Universal Credit but it’s means tested so if you have capital of more than £16,000 you would be excluded from claiming. You could use a benefits calculator nearer the time to see if you would qualify.

angelaand3

ok great. Thank you for your help Poppy