(Updated 03/04/2023)
What is the state pension?
The State Pension is a regular payment from the government most people can claim when they reach State Pension age. Your State Pension age depends on when you were born. You can find out your State Pension age by using the calculator on the GOV.UK website.
The amount of State Pension you’ll get depends on how many ‘qualifying’ years of National Insurance payments you have. This includes National Insurance contributions that you pay when you are working and contributions that are credited to you when you are unable to work.
How much will I get?
You can get an estimate of how much State Pension you could get on GOV.UK. This is called a State Pension Statement.
How your State Pension will work depends on your age and gender.
The amount of State Pension you get depends on your National Insurance record. Your National Insurance record includes National Insurance contributions that you pay when you are working and contributions that are credited to you when you are unable to work.
For example, you can get National Insurance credits when you’re claiming Employment and Support Allowance or Jobseeker’s Allowance, or if you have caring responsibilities. Your record can also include voluntary contributions that you choose to pay to cover gaps when you are not working or getting credits.
When you reach State Pension age, you can claim a State Pension if you've paid or been credited with enough National Insurance contributions during your working life. What you get depends on how many ‘qualifying years’ of National Insurance contributions you have. Each tax year (6 April to 5 April) that you pay or are credited with National Insurance contributions counts as a qualifying year, provided you earn or are credited with earnings of at least a minimum amount. This amount changes every year.
