State Pension Age rise delayed pending further review – will this affect your retirement plans?

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Proposals to increase the State Pension age sooner than planned have been put on hold following a recent review.

The State Pension age is currently 66 and is due to gradually rise to 67 between 2026 and 2028, which the report concluded is appropriate. 

The Government had proposed to bring forward the date at which the State Pension age would rise from 67 to 68 to between 2037 and 2039. However, it has announced this decision will be delayed and plans to undertake a further review within two years.

Under current legislation, the State Pension age increase to 68 is due to take place between 2044 and 2046.

Who will the increase to State Pension age affect?

If you were born

How the current legislation affects you

On or before 5 April 1960

No change

Between 6 April 1960 and 5 March 1961

The State Pension age for men and women will increase to 67 between 2026 and 2028 and is phased in for these people.

After 6 March 1961 but before 6 April 1977

67

After 6 April 1977

State Pension age will increase from 67 to 68 between 2044 and 2046.

 

While we still don’t know exactly when the State Pension age will rise to 68, what we do know is that the rise is inevitable and, for some, it is worth considering how this will affect your retirement plans.

How could this affect my retirement plans?

The purpose of retirement planning is to give you an idea of what your retirement might look like. It’s important though to ensure your plans are flexible and are regularly reviewed to ensure you are on track or if your plans need to be adjusted to fit any evolving needs or desires.

The State Pension increased by more than 10% in April. For those eligible for the full State Pension increased to £203.85 per week or £10,600 per year. For many people, it is an important part of their retirement plans, however, it is still over £2,000 less than what the Retirement Living Standards suggest will be enough to afford a single person a 'minimum' lifestyle in retirement.

If you have already decided when you would like to retire and want to stick to this timescale, you will need to take into account that you may have to work a year longer or wait a year longer, before you are in receipt of your State Pension.

You may want to save more to help fund that one-year £10,600 shortfall, if you are affected, so you can still retire at the age you had planned. Alternatively, you may want to look again at the lifestyle you had planned for retirement – for some this may mean reducing the level of lifestyle planned.

It’s also worth considering your health as this will determine how long you may be able to or want to work.

Currently, personal pensions can be accessed 10 years before your state pension is due. If you were considering retiring at 67 but further down the line find you are in the group that cannot receive the State Pension until 68, you might be tempted to access your personal pension earlier. You might have other savings, such as ISAs. However, this could have a knock-on effect to your future standard of living in retirement.

Answering the following questions will give you a better idea of how your retirement plans can be shaped.

  • Do you know how much is in your pension pot(s)?
  • Are you saving enough or can you make extra contributions?
  • Do you have any unused contributions in the previous 3 years?
  • Do you have multiple pension pots from different employers?
  • Are there any gaps to fill in my national insurance record?
  • Have you reviewed your investment choices in your pension?

Retirement planning is an evolving process due to lifestyle, health changes and government intervention. Therefore, it might be prudent to engage with a retirement expert who can use cashflow modelling tools to show you the impact of such changes to help you plan for any unexpected roadblocks. 


If you would like to speak to one of our independent financial advisers please get in touch.

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