State Pension Amount UK
The full new State Pension for 2023 is £185.15 per week.
You can get more than the full State Pension are if:
- you have over a certain amount of Additional State Pension
- you defer (delay) taking your State Pension
Other Pension Rates
If you reached State Pension age before 6 April 2016, you’ll get a different amount under the basic State Pension rules.
You can still get a State Pension if you have other income like a personal pension or a workplace pension.
State Pension Age In The Uk
Men -The average retirement age in the UK for men is just over 65 years old.
This is also set to rise from 66 to 67 in 2028, and again to 68 in the future.
Women – The average retirement age in the UK for women is 64 years old.
There has been an increase in women’s State Pension age and women have able to start claiming a state pension at the age of 66.
By 2028, this age will rise to 67, and will again rise to 68 for many younger people in the future.
There is no official age that a woman can retire.
How Much Is The Old Age Pension Uk
The full new State Pension is £203.85 per week.
Retire Age Uk – Help For OAPs
This is a blog to help people nearing pension age to inform them all about pensions.
Included is
- Pension age for men and women
- Benefits and Entitlements
- Free Grants For OAPS
What is the Retirement Age in the UK?
The average retirement age in the UK is just under 65 years old.
There are now pension credit qualifying ages – these being the age at which you can access a pension, whether this be a state pension or any other private pension you might have.
Do I Have To Retire At A certain age?
The UK no longer has a mandatory retirement age or forced retirement age.
This law was changed in the Pensions Act 2011 to stop employers from encouraging people to retire at 65 as the default retirement age.
People can continue working for as long as they want (or need) after you reaching state pension age.
State Pension Age in the UK
Currently, the state pension age is 66 for both men and women.
The age at which you’re eligible for a state pension also depends on when you were born. Both men and women born after April 6th 1978 now have a state pension age of 68.
To control the cost of rising state pensions, many people have called for the UK government to increase the UK retirement age to 70 by 2046.
The average retirement age has been steadily increasing since the mid-1900s in line with increasing life expectancies.
Do I Have To Pay Tax On My State Pension UK?
How Your Pension Is Paid
After you’ve made a claim you’ll get a letter about your payments.
The new State Pension is usually paid every 4 weeks into an account of your choice. You’re paid in arrears (for the last 4 weeks, not the coming 4 weeks).
State Pension Eligibility
Under the 2011 Pensions Act, the pension age for women was increased to 65, before becoming 66 for both men and women.
This will rise to 67 for people retiring between 2026 and 2028. Previously, women could get their state pension at 60, while men could start claiming at 65.
The age at which you can start claiming your state pension also depends on when you were born.
Men and women born after April 6, 1978 have to wait slightly longer to claim their pension, whereas those born before April 6, 1970 will be able to claim slightly earlier.
You can check your state pension age using GOV.UK’s handy tool.
All you need to do is enter your date of birth and it’ll tell you when you’ll be able to start claiming.
Will the State Pension Age Change Again?
It will reach 67 by 2028 and is expected to become 68 in the future.
Retirement age and amount received are regularly reviewed – around once every five years – to ensure that the pension amount is fair and the retirement age remains in line with average life expectancy.
Life expectancy increased from 78.5 in 1948 to around 87.8 in 2017.
It makes sense then that amendments to the pension age are necessary, to control the number of people above the UK pension age.
Other economic factors can also affect the state pension age for men and women.
So yes, the state pension age will change again.
How To Apply For An Eco 4 Grant
New Proposal For an Increase to State Pension Age For Women and Men
Under the current law, the State Pension age is due to increase to 68 between 2044 and 2046.
Following a recent review, the government has announced plans to bring this timetable forward.
If approved by parliament, the State Pension age would instead increase to 68 between 2037 and 2039.
These changes will likely increase the age that women and men retire in the UK.
Personal and Workplace Pensions
The ‘Pension Freedom’ rules mean that your pension can be accessed while you’re still working.
These rules mean that you can access your personal pensions at the age of 55 (increasing to 57 in 2028), without getting an unauthorised payment tax charge.
Most modern workplace pensions and personal pensions are defined contribution schemes, with the pension’s value being determined by money contributed and investment performance over time.
When you reach this age (currently 55), you can take 25% of your personal pension tax-free as a lump sum or in several smaller amounts. You can then use the rest as you wish, either by making more withdrawals (and paying income tax) or by buying an annuity.
An annuity is a product that provides you with a guaranteed income for the rest of your life, depending on the size of your personal pension and other factors like age and health.
When Should You Retire?
Retirement ages are considered to be when you can access pensions. With that being said, if you wish to retire or simply stop working then there’s no set age.
For many people, retirement means the ability to stop working while remaining financially secure, with a state pension being the thing that provides this much-needed security.
The earlier you begin your retirement planning and start saving, the better. This way, you won’t need to contribute as much to your pension each month as a healthy amount should have already built up.
To better understand your options and whether early retirement is financially viable, we’d recommend seeking professional retirement advice. This will give you a better understanding of your financial situation.
Iceland £300 Vouchers
The campaign first launched earlier this month, with Iceland providing an initial 40,000 £30 food vouchers to struggling pensioners. But on 24 August 2022, the supermarket announced it had secured a further £1 million for another 40,000 vouchers.
Below we explain who qualifies and how to get the voucher. You can also see our Supermarket shopping tips guide for handy hints on how to cut your food bill.
Here’s who qualifies for the voucher
To qualify for the £30 voucher, you must be of state pension age, live independently (but not necessarily alone) or with a carer, and rely solely on your state pension or other benefits for food and essentials. You can get more than one voucher per household, for example, if you’re in a couple.
You must also live in:
- Birmingham
- Croydon
- Glamorgan
- Glasgow
- Greater Manchester
- Huddersfield
- Lambeth (London)
- Liverpool
- Newcastle
- Newport
- North Wales
- Sheffield
- Strathclyde
- Sunderland
- West Midlands
- Wirral
We’ve asked Iceland if you need to provide proof of your state pension and/or benefits status, and your address. We’ll update this story when we know more.
You need to call to apply for a voucher
You can apply for the voucher by calling the free ‘Cheer hotline’ on 0800 098 7877 from 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday. Iceland has warned that it’s currently receiving a large volume of calls, but if you use the call back function you should receive a return call by the end of the day.
Once you’ve successfully applied, your voucher will arrive by post within seven days. A paper voucher is the only way to get your £30, it will not be sent by bank transfer or cheque and cannot be picked up in store.
Go quick if you want a voucher as they’re being snapped up
The application deadline is still Friday 16 September, but if you qualify, you should apply NOW. The first lot of vouchers were snapped up very quickly.
It’s one voucher per person, so you can’t reapply if you’ve already received one.
Vouchers can be spent in 269 Iceland stores across the UK
You can spend your voucher in 269 Iceland stores across the UK, though bear in mind this is only around a quarter of Iceland shops. Use Iceland’s store locator tool to check for your nearest participating outlet.
Vouchers can be used on food and household items, though not on alcohol and tobacco. You can use your voucher across more than one transaction, so if your shop does not reach £30, you can partially spend the voucher and save the rest for another time. Just take your voucher to the till and the cashier will scan it as they would do with a normal gift card.
You can also use your voucher in conjunction with Iceland’s 10% discount for pensioners, which it runs every Tuesday.
ALL vouchers will expire at 11.59pm on 31 December 2022.
How the scheme is funded
Iceland has partnered with the Rothesay Foundation, which helps support charities to provide better care for older people, to fund the scheme. The Rothesay Foundation has now provided £2 million to pay for 80,000 vouchers nationwide.
The supermarket first trialled the concept in December 2021 in Lambeth, south London, before rolling it out UK-wide from 1 August 2022.
Useful Resources & Other Grants Available For OAPs
More Useful Resources & Other Grants
