Returning to Uk (french citizen)

Hello,

I have a few questions. I can't get through the number for the home office so I thought I'd ask here.

I just returned to the Uk after 4 years, I have french nationality. I came to the UK in 2012 to study for 3 years but then left for good in 2016 while coming back and forth for holidays. I still have my national insurance number but is it still valid? I never had to pay any taxes as I was self-sufficient during my studies. But now I am unsure about if I had to pay into anything such as national insurance contribution/payment considering I was not earning anything or working? At the moment I am waiting on pre settled status and will soon start freelancing so I will need to use my NIN to declare myself as self-employed. Would HMRC ask for anything NI/taxes related as there is no record?

Thank you for reading and answering my questions.

L123 wrote: ↑

Fri Nov 27, 2020 4:06 pm

I still have my national insurance number but is it still valid?

I only started using my NINO on active work only after about two years of acquiring it (I was a student, then job seeker). 11 years later, and 9 years of active NINO contributions after those 2 gap years, I have had no issues.

So I do not see why your NINO would not be valid. But perhaps someone else with more insights can comment.

I never had to pay any taxes as I was self-sufficient during my studies. But now I am unsure about if I had to pay into anything such as national insurance contribution/payment considering I was not earning anything or working?

If you were not earning anything; no, you did not have to pay any taxes, and were not expected to.

Would HMRC ask for anything NI/taxes related as there is no record?

This will simply show up as empty years in your NINO record. You can check your NINO history here (you'll have to set up an account).

Actually, if you did want those gaps to go away and not show empty, you could pay tax retroactively, so that these years can count towards your 10 years required before you are eligible for a state pension. But you do not have to do this.

I still have my national insurance number but is it still valid?

Statement from a TUC website:
You'll only ever be issued with one NI number, and it stays the same for life.

https://worksmart.org.uk/work-rights/yo ... nal%20data.