The basic State Pension
What you'll get
How much basic State Pension you get depends on your National Insurance record.
The full basic State Pension is £141.85 per week.
You can get more State Pension if:
- you are eligible for Additional State Pension
- you delay (defer) taking your State Pension
You may have to pay tax on your State Pension.
If you’re a man born on or after 6 April 1951 or a woman born on or after 6 April 1953, you’ll get the new State Pension amount instead.
Qualifying for the full amount
You usually need a total of 30 qualifying years of National Insurance contributions or credits to get the full basic State Pension.
If you have fewer than 30 qualifying years, your basic State Pension will be less than £141.85 per week. You might be able to increase the amount you get by paying voluntary national insurance contributions.
Check your National Insurance record to find out how many qualifying years you have.
Increasing your State Pension
There are ways you can increase your State Pension.
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. If you deferred your State Pension, you’ll get your first payment at the end of the first full week in which you want to start getting your pension.
Your first payment will not 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 will not 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.
Annual increases
The basic State Pension increases every year by whichever is the highest of the following:
- earnings - the average percentage growth in wages (in Great Britain)
- prices - the percentage growth in prices in the UK as measured by the Consumer Prices Index (CPI)
- 2.5%
Temporary change for the tax year starting April 2022
The basic State Pension has increased by 3.1% this year, in line with CPI.
The average earnings growth was higher, but those figures were affected by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and so they were not taken into account.
Adult Dependency Increase
Adult Dependency Increase payments have stopped. You may be eligible to apply for Pension Credit or Universal Credit.