Basic State Pension (BSP)
The full BSP for 2011/12 is £102.15 per week. It is
rising to £107.45 from April 2012.
This is the maximum available. If you do not have the
maximum qualifying years required to get the
full BSP, you will be entitled to a lower amount based on the
number of qualifying years on your record.
You may be able to get a BSP, or increase your BSP, based on
your spouse or civil partner's National Insurance
contributions. This could be up to £61.20 a
week.
Click here to read
more about the BSP.
State Second Pension (S2P)
The amount of S2P you will receive is based upon on your
earnings between the Lower and Upper Earnings Limits. It will
also depend on whether or not you were contracted-out through a pension plan.
The calculation of the State Second Pension is complicated and has
been changed since its introduction in 1978. Since 6 April 2002,
its calculation basis was changed to be more generous for low and
moderate earners.
Click here to read
more about S2P.
Graduated Retirement Benefit
The rate is dependent on how many contributions you made between
April 1961 and April 1975. For every £7.50 (man) or £9
(woman) of graduated contributions paid, you get 11.89
pence.
Women reaching State Pension Age (SPA) after 5
April 2010 will have their Graduated Retirement Benefit worked out
on the same basis as men. This means the total number of
graduated contributions will be divided by £7.50.
Click here to read
more about the Graduated Pension.
Pension Credit
The aim of Pension Credit is to give everyone aged 60 and over
an income of at least:
- £137.35 a week (single person); or
- £209.70 a week (two people living together).
These are the standard rates. An individual who is a registered
carer may get an extra £31.00 a week and a registered
disabled person may qualify for an extra £55.30 a week.
Individuals over aged 65 may also be rewarded for their savings,
by up to:
- £20.52 a week (single person); or
- £27.09 a week (two people living together).
Claims for Pension Credit made on or after 6 October 2008 will
only be backdated for payment by up to three months. Claims
made before 6 October 2008 will be backdated by up to 12
months.
Click here to
read more about Pension Credit.
Age 80s Age Addition
When you reach 80 the state pension is automatically increased
by 25 pence a week.
Extra benefits for dependants
Children
If you received an increase in respect of dependent children
before 5 April 2003, the extra pension is:
- £8.10 for the oldest child who qualifies for Child
Benefit
- £11.35 for each other child who qualifies.
No claims for this benefit can be made after 6 April 2003.
Adults
You may get £58.80, for a husband, wife, civil partner or
a person looking after a child for you, if you get paid some Basic
State Pension and you are entitled to Child Benefit for the child.
Any earnings of the person looking after a child for you may affect
the amount you get.
From 6 April 2010 it will no longer be possible to claim this
increase. This also applies if you reach State Pension Age before 6
April 2010, but you defer claiming your pension until that date or
later.
If you are already receiving the increase at 6 April 2010 it
will remain in payment, so long as you meet the conditions, up to
April 2020.
Increases
The Basic State Pension is increased each April using the
increase in earnings, prices (CPI) or 2.5 per cent,
whichever is highest. The additional state pension
amounts are increased in line with CPI. The increase is
applied in the first week of the new financial year, normally on
the first Monday.
Managing Your Money A Health Check
Whatever the situation with your finances, it's good to know
where you stand and that you are making the most of what you have.
The health check, a new online money planner from the Money Advice
Service, is for everyone.
The Money Advice Service is independent and it's here to help
everyone understand and manage their money better.
It takes just 10 minutes to answer some straightforward
questions and the health check will give you a personalised action
plan which identifies the top three things you can do to make the
most of your money right now, and to plan for future
goals.
Best of all - it's free and it's unbiased. The Money Advice
Service won't recommend a particular product or provider or try to
sell you anything.
Click here to use the Money Advice Service
Health Check
Q & A's
If you've been a member of a contracted out pension scheme, your
entitlement to the State Second Pension (S2P) will be reduced by an
amount called the Contracted Out Deduction (COD). This takes
into account the period you were contracted out. This does
not affect your Basic State Pension entitlement.
State Pensions increase every April in line with earnings
inflation, the consumer price index (CPI) or 2.5%, whichever is
greater.
If your wife has only paid contributions based on the married
woman's reduced rate also known as the married woman's stamp or has
never worked then she will not receive a pension in her own right.
However she can receive a basic state retirement pension of 60% of
your entitlement based on your contribution record. She can claim
this when you reach your State Pension Age.
