Brits reaching State Pension age can not declare these advantages

When you become eligible for the State Pension, you’ll no longer qualify for some other payments.

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Brits are being urged to remember that once they hit a particular age, they’ll lose their right to claim certain benefits. When you become eligible for the State Pension, you’ll no longer qualify for some other payments.

As reported by the Daily Record, the most recent statistics from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) show that the State Pension is currently delivering essential financial assistance to 13.2 million individuals throughout Great Britain.

This regular payment is worth up to £241.30 per week for those on the New State Pension (claimed after April 6, 2016), or £184.90 each week for the Basic State Pension (Category A or B).

The sum a person receives from this contributory benefit is calculated based on the number of National Insurance years built up before reaching retirement age – with a minimum of 10 years needed to qualify for any State Pension payment. It’s important to note that the State Pension age has now started a gradual rise from 66 to 67.

The UK Government has also modified how the increase in State Pension age is being implemented. Instead of reaching State Pension age on a specific date, individuals born between March 6, 1961 and April 5, 1977 will be entitled to claim their State Pension when they turn 67.

The change to the official retirement age has been set in law since 2014, with a subsequent rise from 67 to 68 planned for the mid-2040s.

For those approaching the official retirement age, it’s vital to know which benefits will continue to be accessible, new support you might qualify for, and those you can no longer request.

Your State Pension age corresponds with your Pension Credit qualifying age unless you are a man born before December 6, 1953. You can confirm your State Pension age and establish whether you can start claiming Pension Credit on the ‘Check your State Pension age’ section of the GOV.UK website here.

Benefits affected by your pension age

Turn2us has created an essential guide to the benefits you cannot claim from the DWP when you reach State Pension age or Pension Credit age. For full details on each of the topics listed below, visit the Turn2us website here.

Pension Credit age

When you reach State Pension age you can no longer claim:

• Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance
• Income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
• Income Support
• Universal Credit

Turn2us advises: “If you live with a partner and one of you is pension age and the other is not yet pension age, benefit entitlement can be complicated.”

Use the Turn2us benefit calculator to see what benefits you’re entitled to, or get help from a benefits adviser.

State Pension age

When you reach State Pension age you can no longer claim:

• Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA)
• Contributory/New Style Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)

You cannot make a new claim for Disability Living Allowance (DLA), Personal Independence Payment (PIP) or Adult Disability Payment (ADP) – the devolved disability benefit has now replaced all new and existing claims for PIP for people in Scotland – once you have reached State Pension age.

However, if you were already receiving DLA, PIP, or ADP you can renew the claim even though you are over State Pension age. This can only be done as long as you are claiming for the same health conditions you received the award for and your last claim ended less than 12 months before you reached State Pension age.

Bereavement Support Payment and Widowed Parent’s Allowance are also not available once you reach State Pension age.

Benefits not affected by your State Pension age

You can claim these benefits even if you are over State Pension age:

• Child Benefit (delivered by HMRC)
• Carer’s Allowance – you may not be eligible for the full financial element depending on your income from State Pension
• Guardian’s Allowance
• Statutory Sick Pay (SSP)

You can also claim these benefits even if you are over State Pension age, but only if you meet the benefit-specific income threshold:

• Pension Credit
• Housing Benefit
• Council Tax Support
• Support for Mortgage Interest
• Help with Health Costs
• Winter Heating Payment – Scotland only
• Cold Weather Payment – England and Wales only
• Warm Home Discount Scheme
• Winter Fuel Payment
• Pension Age Winter Heating Payment – Scotland only, same qualifying rules as Winter Fuel Payment

For more details about benefits when you reach State Pension age, visit the Turn2Us website here.