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Money, tax and benefits

Money, tax and benefits

What happens to your State Pension when you die?

When you die, your entitlement to the basic State Pension ends. However, if you'd put off receiving your State Pension when you'd reached State Pension age, your partner or family may be entitled to some of your State Pension benefits.

Basic State Pension

Your basic State Pension is paid only to you, and can’t be passed on to someone else when you die. However, if you chose to put off claiming your State Pension when you reached State Pension age, your widow, widower or surviving civil partner may be entitled to your extra State Pension.

Your widowed legal husband, wife or civil partner may also be able to claim a one-off Bereavement Payment – or bereavement benefits (‘Bereavement Allowance’) for one year – depending on the amount of National Insurance contributions you’ve paid, or are treated as having paid.

If they’re still of working age, they may also be able to claim tax credits.

You may have contributed towards an additional State Pension - also known as the State Earnings-Related Pension Scheme (SERPS) and State Second Pension.

If you die, your spouse or civil partner can inherit some of this additional pension. How much they can get depends on when you were born:

If you are... % of additional State Pension payable
...a man born on or after 6 October 1945 50%
...a man born on or before 5 October 1937 100%
...a man born between 6 October 1937 and 5 October 1945 60% to 90%*
...a woman born on or after 6 July 1950 50%
...a woman born on or before 5 October 1942 100%
...a woman born between 6 October 1942 and 5 October 5 July 1950 60% to 90%*

*the percentage depends on your exact date of birth

Putting off claiming your State Pension

When you reach State Pension age, you may choose to put off claiming your State Pension. State Pension age is currently 65 for men, 60 for women born on or before 5 April 1950; for women born on or after 6 April 1950 it will increase from 60 to 65 between 2010 and 2020. State Pension age will increase for both men and women from age 65 to 68 between 2024 and 2046.

If you put off claiming your State Pension in this way, you can choose to get either:

  • extra State Pension when you start to draw it (around 10.4 per cent extra for every year you put off claiming it) or
  • a lump-sum payment (based on the amount you put off claiming, plus interest at two per cent above the Bank of England base rate)

If you die before starting to claim the State Pension you have put off claiming

Your extra State Pension may be added to your spouse's or civil partner's State Pension. If you get an additional State Pension, they can still inherit some of this – usually around half.

Under the current rules, which will change in 2010, men and women are treated differently:

  • a woman can benefit from her late husband's or civil partner's State Pension he put off claiming when she reaches State Pension age provided she hasn't re-married or registered again as a civil partner
  • a man can't get his late wife's or civil partner's State Pension she put off claiming unless he himself is over State Pension age when she dies

If you die after starting to claim a State Pension you had put off claiming

Your widow's, widower's or civil partner's own State Pension payments will be increased. For any basic State Pension you put off claiming, your widow, widower or civil partner will be entitled to the same amount as you would have received. They'll also be entitled to some of your additional State Pension (usually half), if you were receiving any.

If you chose a lump-sum payment instead of extra State Pension, any amount you still have left forms part of your estate. The State Pension payments of your widow, widower or civil partner won't be increased.

State Pension rights if you have no spouse or civil partner

If you have no husband, wife or civil partner when you die, the State Pension you put off claiming becomes part of your estate. Your next of kin can claim an amount equal to the first three months of extra State Pension payments.

Getting advice

For information and help on pensions, you can contact The Pension Service. In a financial crisis you can call its emergency helpline on 020 8902 8769 (8.00 am to 10.00 pm Monday to Friday, 9.00 am to 10.00 pm on Saturday, and noon to 8.00 pm on Sunday).

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