Brits in their 40s face retirement turmoil because they don't know the pension age is going up, research shows.
The government is pressing ahead with plans to hike the normal minimum pension age (NMPA) from 55 to 57.
This is the earliest you can take cash out of your private pension without being hit by tax penalties.
The government has been planning this since 2014 , and the changes will come in on April 6 2028.
But four out of five people in their forties are unaware this is happening, according to research from the Pensions Management Institute (PMI) trade body for pension workers.
The PMI said many people wanting to take their pension as soon as possible "may be shocked" to find out they must work two extra years, the Mail Online reports .
The PMI found that 18 percent of 2,000 workers aged 40-49 knew about the increase.
But only 4 percent knew the current minimum age to take a pension is 55.
PMI president Lesley Alexander said: "The results of this research are particularly worrying, as they suggest strongly that the government has failed to make the general public aware of a significant change in pensions policy."
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Taking your private pension before the minimum retirement age is possible - but it normally means paying big penalties.
However, the increase to the pension age to 57 does not apply to everyone.
Workers in public service pension scheme will still have a retirement age of 55.
Penalties for taking your private pension early also do not apply if you are very ill or have life expectancy of less than a year.
But the details vary between pension providers, so it is best to check with yours if that applies to you.
The state pension age is unaffected - currently 66 for both men and women.
The full new state pension will increase by £290 per year from April 2022, in line with September's inflation rate of 3.1%.
The current full, new state pension is £179.60 a week, or around £9,339 a year.
A rise of 3.1% adds an extra £5.56 a week to the payment, increasing it to £185.15 a week. Over the year that's £9,628.50, and an extra £289.50.
Pension credit will also go up this year - and couples will be able to get up to £278.70 a week if they qualify.
This is a type of benefit that gives you extra money to help with your living costs if you’re over the state pension age and on a low income.
The most you can currently get in pension credit is £177.10 a week if you are single or £270.30 for couples.
But from this April that will go up to £182.60 and £278.70.
That means a rise of £5.50 a week for single people and £8.40 a week for couples.
