Bonner v HMRC (and related appeals)

In Bonner v HMRC (and related appeals) (Upper Tribunal – 22 December) the government had published a proposal in 2006 that for people reaching the state pension age on or after 6 April 2010 only 30 years of national insurance contributions should be required to earn the full basic state pension (the thresholds had previously been 44 years for men and 39 for women). This change was enacted in the Pensions Act 2007 s 1(3) and came into force on 26 September 2007. Thirteen individuals who had paid Class 3 contributions from 2003 to 2006 in order to reach the previous 44-year limit submitted a repayment claim under Social Security (Contributions) Regulations SI 2001/1004 reg 52. HMRC rejected the claim on the basis that the contributions had not been ‘paid in error’. The First-Tier Tribunal reviewed the evidence in detail and allowed...