State Pension: how it works

The State Pension is designed to give you a regular retirement income from the government, even if you have other income or pensions. 

After you’ve claimed it, it’s usually paid every four weeks, rather than the same date each month.

You can claim the State Pension after you reach a certain age, which varies depending on when you were born.

You can quickly check your State Pension age on GOV.UKOpens in a new window but here’s a guide.

You can currently take a private pension, including some workplace pensions, from age 55 (increasing to age 57 from 2028).

This means you might choose to retire before you can claim your State Pension. Equally, you can still claim your State Pension and carry on working.

How much you’ll get in your State Pension depends on how many years you’ve made National Insurance contributions. These are called qualifying years.  

When you reach State Pension ageOpens in a new window you usually need at least: 

• 35 years of qualifying contributions to get the full amount (currently £221.20 a week), and

• ten qualifying years to get anything (currently £63.20 a week).

You’ll get an amount in between if you have 11 to 34 years of qualifying contributions. 

Qualifying National Insurance contributions are usually made:

• by your employer, including an amount deducted from your wages 

• as part of your Self-Assessment tax return if you’re self-employed

• using National Insurance creditsOpens in a new window if you receive certain benefits like Child Benefit, Universal Credit and Jobseeker’s Allowance.

You can also pay for voluntary National Insurance contributions to fill any gaps in your record and boost the amount you’ll get.  

You might need more than 35 years of qualifying National Insurance contributions to get the full State Pension if you were:

• working before April 2016 with a workplace or personal pension, and

• ‘contracted out’ of the Additional State Pension (called ‘SERPS’).

This meant you and your employer paid less National Insurance to the government, often as some of the money was paid into your workplace or personal pension instead.  

See Contracted out of the Additional State Pension on GOV.UKOpens in a new window for more information, including how to check if you were contracted out.

Your State Pension is calculated differently if you reached State Pension age before 6 April 2016, as you’ll claim the old State Pension with two parts. See GOV.UK for more information on the:  

• Basic State PensionOpens in a new window 

• Additional State PensionOpens in a new window – including if you were contracted out. 

You can check your State Pension forecast on GOV.UKOpens in a new window

This will show you:

• how much State Pension you’re on track to get

• ways to increase it if you’re unlikely to get the maximum, and

• when you can claim your State Pension.

You can also apply by postOpens in a new window or call the Future Pension Centre helplineOpens in a new window to get a copy of your forecast, provided you won’t reach State Pension ageOpens in a new window within 30 days.

If your State Pension forecastOpens in a new window shows you might not qualify for the full amount, there are a few things you could do:

1. Check if you can claim free National Insurance credits on GOV.UKOpens in a new window. For example, if you’re an unpaid carer or looking for work. Some claims can be backdated.   
2. Consider paying for voluntary National Insurance contributions to fill any gaps in your record. See our guide Increase your State Pension with voluntary National Insurance contributions for more information. 
3. When you reach State Pension ageOpens in a new window, apply for Pension Credit to top up your income. See our guide Pension Credit for more information. 

You can also boost the amount you get by delaying your claim for State Pension, even if you qualify for the full amount.

See our guide Increase your State Pension by deferring your claim for more help. 

Your State Pension isn’t paid automatically. Here are the steps to claim it:

1. You should receive a letter around four months before you reach your State Pension age with an invitation code.
   
   If you haven’t received it three months before you turn State Pension age, or you’ve lost it, you can request an invitation code on GOV.UKOpens in a new windowpens in a new window
2. Use your invitation code to apply, depending on where you live. There’s no time limit for you to apply.

When you reach State Pension age, you’ll usually still pay Income Tax if you earn more than £12,570 a year – including the income from your State Pension. But you won’t have to make National Insurance contributions on income from your State Pension.

Your State Pension will be paid to you without tax taken off. Instead, your tax code will usually be changed so you’ll pay any extra tax you owe from your other income – like your wages or another pension.

If you’re self-employed or have a different type of income, like from renting out a property, you’ll likely need to fill in a Self Assessment tax return.

Your weekly State Pension amount increases in April each year, based on a system known as the triple lock. This means the increase matches one of three percentages, with the government choosing the highest of:

• how much general costs have risen by (inflation), based on the previous September’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) 

• the average increase in wages between May and July of the previous year, or

• 2.5%.

This applies to most State Pension payments, but there are two exceptions. These increase in line with CPI instead:

1. Additional State Pension – part of the old State Pension you might get if you reached pension age before 6 April 2016.
2. Any extra amount if you decided to delay (defer) taking your State Pension.

Your State Pension payments will generally stop when you die. But your spouse or civil partner might be able to inherit some of your State Pension. 

You can use the State Pension and your partner tool on GOV.UKOpens in a new window to check if you qualify.

For more help, see our other guides:

• State Pension death benefits

• What to do about someone’s pension when they’ve died

• Help when someone dies