The existing “Check your State Pension forecast” tool has now been enhanced to include a fully end-to-end digital solution.

Customers will be able to see how much their state pension could increase by and see details of the voluntary National Insurance contributions they would need to pay to achieve this.

Most people under state pension age will be able to view gaps in their National Insurance record and, if it would benefit them, pay voluntary National Insurance contributions to fill the gaps.

For those who find their state pension could be increased by paying voluntary National Insurance contributions will be able to use the new digital service to choose which years they would like to pay to fill.

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They will be able to pay securely through the service and get confirmation that their payment has been received and that their National Insurance record will be updated.

It’s important people check to see if they can claim National Insurance credits first, and for those paying voluntary NI contributions, it’s worth working out if they will be better off by making the payments.

Nigel Huddleston, Financial Secretary to the Treasury, said: “Having peace of mind when planning for retirement is crucial to ensure people can enjoy later life.

“That’s why HMRC has launched this new online service today, making a real difference for thousands of pensioners in their retirement while providing certainty to those in their middle years and those still planning ahead.”

Minister for Pensions, Paul Maynard, said: “The state pension is the foundation of income in retirement, which is why we have introduced this new online tool to help simplify boosting it for those who are able to.

“I would encourage everyone to check their state pension forecast and to take a look at how they could improve their state pension award with only a few simple clicks.”

Steve Webb, partner at LCP, said the announcement is “very good news” if people can top up their National Insurance record online.

He added: “Until now people have had to battle through on two different phone lines – one to check with DWP which years they can top up and then one to HMRC to get a reference number to make a payment.

“It must be a step in the right direction to be able to do all of this without hanging on a telephone.

“However, simply getting your NI record updated by HMRC is only half of the story. It then needs DWP to reassess your state pension entitlement based on your improved contribution record.

“There are already too many cases where people wait months or longer to get their pension figure revised.

“It is vital that the government puts in place new capacity at DWP to process all of these changes, otherwise they will simply have created a new bottleneck in the system.”