Deferring your state pension
You may decide you'd prefer to defer your state pension, allowing you to earn extra state pension or a single taxable lump sum.
When you reach state pension age, you don't have to stop working or start claiming your state pension.
What's more, you can even stop claiming state pension after having claimed for it for some time. The age at which you retire from employment doesn't affect when you can start to draw state pension.
Since April 2005, if you put off claiming your state pension, you can choose from the following options when you claim:
Extra state pension
If you put off claiming your state pension for at least five weeks you can earn an increase to your state pension. The increase is 1% for every five weeks you put off claiming.
Once you claim your state pension, any extra state pension you have built up will usually increase each year.
Claiming a lump sum payment
If you put off claiming your state pension for 12 consecutive months, you may choose to receive a one-off lump sum payment. Your state pension will also be paid at the normal rate and your delay in claiming must have fallen after 5 April 2005.
Be aware, however, you won't build up any extra state pension or lump sum if you or your partner receives certain social security benefits while you put off claiming your state pension.
Deferring state pension
The Pension Service will send you a letter four months before you reach state pension age.
If you have not yet claimed your state pension but you want to put off getting it, you don't need to do anything. However, you will need to inform The Pension Service about what you want to do if you are already claiming another social security benefit.
If you already claim and would like to defer, you should contact your pension centre – you can find the phone number on any letters you have received.
Living abroad
If you live overseas and haven't claimed your state pension, you may be able to defer claiming it once your reach state pension age. However, you must live in one of the following countries:
Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Gibraltar, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, The Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.
