If you’ve divorced or have dissolved your civil partnership, or if you’re in the process of doing so, you might find you have less to retire on than you expected. Find out how to increase your pension as you approach retirement and how separating after you’ve retired might affect you.
If you’re already divorced or have dissolved your civil partnership
When you divorced or dissolved your civil partnership, any workplace or private pensions that you or your ex-partner (husband, wife or civil partner) had, should have been taken into account when dividing the assets.
In Scotland, only the pension that was built up during marriage or the civil partnership is taken into account.
If you were already receiving your State Pension when you divorced and you reached State Pension age before 6 April 2016, any basic State Pension you had would not have been split at divorce or dissolution.
But any Additional State Pension you had might have been shared. Not everyone gets this, it’s the part that you could build up under the old system if you were employed and earning above a certain amount.
If you had not yet reached your State Pension age or you reached your State Pension age on or after 6 April 2016 when you divorced, you’ll get the new State Pension, and this cannot be shared on divorce.
If you’re entitled to an extra payment on top of your State Pension, known as a ‘protected payment’ (which normally accounts for Additional State Pension you had built up before 6 April 2016), then you might have been ordered to share this.
Getting divorced and want to discuss your pensions options?
One of our pension specialists can guide you through your options during a divorce. They’ll talk to you about what you’ll need to think about, and where to get regulated advice if you need it.
The pension(s) might have been split (or shared) at the time of divorce or dissolution.
Or part of the pension(s) might have been ring-fenced to be paid out for one partner at retirement, or its/their value could have been offset against the value of other assets, such as the family home.
Reviewing your pensions before you retire
Check our Pension calculator
You can get an estimate of the income you'll get when you retire with our Pension calculator
If the pension(s) were shared when you got divorced or dissolved your civil partnership, check how much your pension(s) are worth now and work out how much you might be able to retire on.
If the pension was part of an attachment or earmarking order, check the terms of the order to find out what you’ll get and when.
If the pension(s) weren’t shared because you were awarded a larger share of the house or other assets instead, work out how much any pension savings you’ve built up separately are worth.
If you’re unlikely to have enough money to retire on, work out whether you can save any more.
Divorce or dissolution after you retire
Are you getting divorced or dissolving your civil partnership, or contemplating this, after you’ve retired? If you are, any pensions that you and your ex-partner have will be treated slightly differently than if you separate before you retire.
It’s best to get financial advice as this is a complicated area.
Retirement adviser directory
You can find Financial Conduct Authority-registered financial advisers who specialise in retirement planning in our Retirement adviser directory
If you’re considering getting divorced or dissolving your civil partnership, it’s a good idea to get advice from a solicitor (and sometimes a financial adviser or actuary as well). This will make sure the pension is valued and divided correctly.
Find out more about what professional help is available if you’re getting divorced or dissolving your civil partnership in our guide Your options for legal or financial advice on divorce or dissolution
It’s important not to make assumptions about what you’ll be entitled to.
If you’re divorcing in England or Wales you can find more detailed information on what to do, what the law says on dealing with pensions when divorcing and how you can come to an agreement in this guide from AdvicenowOpens in a new window
Advicenow is a service provided by Law for LifeOpens in a new window which is a foundation for public legal education.
Your State Pension and divorce or dissolution
If you reached State pension age after 5 April 2016, your State Pension is based on your own National Insurance record.
This new State Pension can’t be shared if your marriage or civil partnership ends.
However, some people might have already built up an amount higher than the new State Pension. This is because of entitlement to the Additional State Pension, which applied to some employed people under the old system.
This is known as a ‘protected payment’ and a court could decide that this payment is eligible for sharing.
You can complete a BR20 form to get a valuation of your State Pensions, which will help the court make a decision. Get the BR20 form at GOV.UKOpens in a new window
If you reached State Pension age before 6 April 2016, any basic State Pension you have cannot be split at divorce or dissolution.
But any Additional State Pension you have can be shared. Not everyone gets this, it’s the part that you could build up under the old system if you were employed and earning above a certain amount.
What happens to death benefits?
Some pension arrangements provide death benefits such as a lump sum or a spouse’s/civil partner’s pension.
Each scheme will have their own rules on who will get what benefits. So, if someone is financially dependent on the member, or the member and their spouse/partner haven’t legally divorced or dissolved their civil partnership, they might still be entitled to a pension when the member dies.
The pension scheme will look at the circumstances of the relationship and the scheme rules to help them decide if anyone is entitled to any pension benefits.
If you’re currently receiving death benefits from a deceased member’s pension, these will not be shareable although the income may be taken into account as part of a divorce settlement.
Also, make sure you check to see if you've updated the beneficiaries of your pensions.
