The basic State Pension

2. What you'll get

The full basic State Pension is £122.30 per week. There are ways you can increase your State Pension up to or above the full amount.

You may have to pay tax on your State Pension.

Apply for a detailed State Pension statement.

How it’s paid

The day your pension is paid depends on your National Insurance number.

Last 2 digits of your National Insurance number	Day your State Pension gets paid
00 to 19	Monday
20 to 39	Tuesday
40 to 59	Wednesday
60 to 79	Thursday
80 to 99	Friday

Your first payment is made at the end of the first full week after you reach State Pension age.  It won’t include the time between reaching State Pension age and your normal payment day if that’s less than one week.

Example

You reach State Pension age on Monday 16 December 2013 and your first payday is a Friday.

The first full week ending on a Friday after the Monday you reached State Pension age is Saturday 21 December to Friday 27 December.

You won’t be paid between 16 December and 21 December because this is less than one week.

The basic State Pension is usually paid every 4 weeks into an account of your choice. You’re paid ‘in arrears’, which means you’re paid for the last 4 weeks, not for the coming 4 weeks.

There are different rules if you live abroad.

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