If you're approaching the official age of retirement, it is worth noting that your age may affect which benefits you can claim in later life.
When you reach State Pension age or Pension Credit age you can start claiming some benefits - but others will stop. Here, we have listed all the benefits you cannot claim from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) as well as those that you can.
Your State Pension age is the same as your Pension Credit age unless you are a man born before December 6, 1953. You can check your State Pension age and whether you can start claiming Pension Credit on the 'Check your State Pension age' page of the GOV.UK website here.
Read More: DWP can give up to £812 for essentials like rent and clothes if you are on specific benefits
State Pension benefits are currently under review by the Government. This regular payment of up to £185.15 per week for the full new State Pension or £141.85 per week for the basic old State Pension (Category A or B) is available for those who have reached the UK Government’s eligible retirement age, which increased to 66 for both men and women in October 2020, reports the Daily Record.
But now, two further increases have been set out in legislation and are currently under review for a gradual rise to 67 for those born on or after April 1960 and a gradual rise to 68 between 2044 and 2046 for those born on or after April 1977.
Benefits affected by your pension age
Turn2us has created a 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 new disability benefit replacing PIP for people in Scotland this year - 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 that you received the award for and your last claim ended less than 12 months before you reached State Pension age.
The DWP has said that DLA claimants who were born before April 8, 1948, will not be transferred to PIP, however, those born after that date will be. 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
- Working Tax Credit (HMRC) - you can't make new claims for this, but if you're already getting it you can carry on receiving it
- Child Tax Credit (HMRC)- you can't make new claims for this, but if you're already getting it you can carry on receiving it
- Help with Health Costs
- Cold Weather Payment - being replaced by new £50 payment in Scotland this winter
- Warm Home Discount Scheme
- Winter Fuel Payment
Read Next:
-
Child maintenance payments and if they affect your DWP Universal Credit benefit
-
DWP answers 10 questions about cost of living payments including dates and affect on benefits
-
DWP is replacing six benefits with Universal Credit by end of 2024
-
DWP announces exact dates PIP Christmas payments will be paid into your bank account
-
Self-employed workers can claim Universal Credit - how much you can get and what you need to do
