self employment maternity allowance please help :(

[mandygj]

hi im looking for any advice anyone can give me.
i have been self employed (hairdressing) for a year next month and when i registered self employed i said i wanted to pay class 2 national insurance contributions. i got a letter a few months ago for the amount of £55 which i paid in full at the post office a few weeks ago (had until end of july to pay it)
anyways im 30 weeks pregnant and i sent my form off for maternity allowance about 2 weeks ago.
im really panicking that im not eligable for maternity pay, im not sure how it all works and im going to really really struggle if im not entitled to it, does anyone know about maternity allowance when self employed and had any similiar experiences?
ive read a lot about class 2 national insurance and it makes it easier to get maternity allowance if you have been paying it, but im not sure how long or how much you have had to have paid in order to qualify for anything..
im so confused, so im sorry if this all sounds confusing.
i dont know what ill do if i get nothing, ill have to go striaght back to work right away but im having a c section (2nd) and i know how long it took me to recover first time round.
thanks x

 

[sparkle200]

hi im looking for any advice anyone can give me.
i have been self employed (hairdressing) for a year next month and when i registered self employed i said i wanted to pay class 2 national insurance contributions. i got a letter a few months ago for the amount of £55 which i paid in full at the post office a few weeks ago (had until end of july to pay it)
anyways im 30 weeks pregnant and i sent my form off for maternity allowance about 2 weeks ago.
im really panicking that im not eligable for maternity pay, im not sure how it all works and im going to really really struggle if im not entitled to it, does anyone know about maternity allowance when self employed and had any similiar experiences?
ive read a lot about class 2 national insurance and it makes it easier to get maternity allowance if you have been paying it, but im not sure how long or how much you have had to have paid in order to qualify for anything..
im so confused, so im sorry if this all sounds confusing.
i dont know what ill do if i get nothing, ill have to go striaght back to work right away but im having a c section (2nd) and i know how long it took me to recover first time round.
thanks x

Hiya i've been self employed for past 5 years and was entitled to it when my 1st baby was born over 3 years ago and was all fine! As long as your up to date with national insurance which you are then i'm guessing you'll be fine. I wasn't up to date with my national insurance payments 1st time ooopppsss so was declined but paid them off straight away and then I was eligible!!! xx

 

[sparkle200]

P.S I mean I was entitled to it as soon as I was 5 months (I think thats when it starts right?!) and fine again this time round hope this helps xx

 

[mandygj]

thanks for your reply, i hope im up to date but this is what worrys me, i only had one letter a few months ago for the payment of £55 which i paid a few months ago at post office but this morning i got a letter for two payments to be paid together coming to £120 which i have till end of july to pay but the dates for the two payments are for last year so does that mean im not up to date? xx

 

[Chellxx]

If you haven't paid all of you NI payments then they will tell you how much you owe and you can pay that amount off and you will be eligible, I think it's about 35 a quarter for NI2. Give hmrc ring they are really helpful and will be able to tell you right away where you stand

 

[mandygj]

ill maybe give them a ring in the morning and see what they say, so if i havent paid enough NI will they let me pay it and then reaply for MA? x

 

[Chellxx]

As far as I know yes, when I applied (with ds) they wrote and notified me that they where checking my ni contributions and they would notify me if I need to make a payment to bring me upto date to be eligible

 

[suzib76]

yes they will, i was over 300 in arrears with my NI and i just paid it at a post office one day and sent my claim off about a week later, as long as it is paid you will be fine

 

[Saxogirl]

Hey ladies, just wondering how long it took to hear back about your MA?

I am up to date with nat ins etc, and got MA fine first time round (3 yrs ago) so hoping all ok but it's been a couple of weeks since i sent my form off and was wondering how long to leave it until chasing it up? (assuming i haven't heard anything obviously lol!)
Thanks!