Katie Williams
The official state pension age is 66 for both men and women, and is scheduled to rise to 67 and then to 68 in the future.
But, a recently-launched State Pension Age Review has caused concern that the government may choose to speed up those increases.
Meanwhile, a report from the Office for Budget and Responsibility (OBR) highlighting the spiralling cost of the state pension has led some experts to speculate that the minimum age at which people claim the benefit may have to rise to 70 and beyond. One consultant says it could even reach “the dizzying heights of age 80”.
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Bear in mind that the state pension age is different to your own retirement age. You may choose to retire earlier. Most people have a private pension – such as a workplace pension or a SIPP – which they can access from age 55 (rising to 57 in 2028).
Having said that, the state pension remains an important part of many people’s retirement strategy. For 24% of savers, it is the only source of income they will have once they quit the workplace, according to research from financial services company SunLife.
When will you get your state pension?
While the state pension age is currently 66, it is due to go up a couple of times over the next 20 years. The state pension age will rise to 67 between 2026 and 2028, and again to 68 between 2044 and 2046.
A quick and simple way to check your retirement age is to use the tool on the government website. Bear in mind that the result you get today could change in the future if the government introduces new legislation.
Will the state pension age rise again in future?
Labour recently ordered a review of the state pension age.
It made the announcement at the same time as reviving the Pensions Commission, which will look at tackling the “retirement crisis that risks tomorrow’s pensioners being poorer than today’s”. The government warns that too many working-age adults (45%) save nothing at all into a pension.
By law, the government must review the age at which people can claim the state pension every six years – the last one concluded in 2023 and the latest review is set to last until 2029. The review will consider whether the current state pension age is still appropriate, based on things like the latest life expectancy data, fairness between generations and international comparisons.
Many experts expect the review to recommend that the state pension age increases be sped up. However, the government does not have to accept the recommendations. While raising the age would certainly save money, it would also draw criticism and potentially lose Labour voters.
Damon Hopkins, head of DC workplace savings at the consultancy Broadstone, says he wouldn’t be surprised to see an acceleration applied to the increase of the age.
He comments: “The combination of an ageing population and the huge fiscal cost of the state pension would suggest that a change is inevitable.”
Kirsty Anderson, retirement specialist at the wealth manager Quilter, adds: “Accelerating the rise to 68 may be necessary to protect sustainability, but must be justified with updated life expectancy data and a clear understanding of regional disparities.”
In terms of future increases, the consultancy Barnett Waddingham points out that the OBR’s Fiscal risks and sustainability report shows the cost of the state pension as a proportion of GDP doubling over the next 50 years, driven by a growing retirement population relative to the working age population.
Jack Carmichael, senior consulting actuary at Barnett Waddingham, argues that keeping the cost of the state pension at a similar proportion of GDP would require a “massive increase in the state pension age, potentially up to the dizzying heights of age 80”.
Plenty of other experts have warned that the state pension age needs to go up. A report published by the International Longevity Centre last year said the state pension age may have to rise to 71 by 2050 to ensure there are enough people left in the workforce to keep funding the retirement benefit.
Meanwhile, the London School of Economics published a separate report that argued the state pension age should be increased to 68 “as soon as is possible” rather than waiting until 2044-2046.
Why is the state pension age rising?
The basic state pension was introduced in 1948, three years after the end of the Second World War. Retirement age was set as 60 for women and 65 for men.
At the time, most pensioners were only expected to live for a few years after reaching state pension age. However, as living standards have improved, life expectancies have stretched, meaning some people are now spending up to a third of their life in retirement.
In a 2023 review, the Department for Work and Pensions pointed out that men born in 1951 were expected to live to 76 and women to 81. Meanwhile, men born in 2020 are expected to live to 87 and women to 90.
This means the state pension is becoming increasingly expensive for the government to fund. It is the second-largest item in the government budget after health.
According to the OBR, the annual cost of the state pension has already risen from £125 billion in 2023/24 to £138 billion today.
The rate of inflation hasn’t helped matters recently. Each year, the amount of state pension that retirees receive increases in line with inflation, wage growth or 2.5% – whichever measure is highest. This ‘triple lock’ helps protect pensioners against the rising cost of living, but it is expensive for the taxpayer.
For example, those who qualify for the full new state pension saw their annual payout increase by £470 from April 2025.
When all these factors are considered, it is perhaps unsurprising that the state pension age is rising. However, continually pushing retirement back for thousands of savers isn’t a quick fix either. The injustice suffered by the Waspi women in recent years is just one example of the problems that can come with changing the system.
What risks are associated with a rising state pension age?
An ageing workforce isn’t ideal from a health or efficiency perspective, and could bring problems as the state pension age continues to go up.
“The higher the state pension age, the more individuals will struggle to stay in work. This could be because of their health, a physically or mentally taxing job or caring responsibilities for elderly parents,” says Steven Cameron, pensions director at financial services company Aegon.
He adds: “We’re already seeing increasing numbers of over 50s exiting the workforce due to ill health. An ever-rising fixed state pension age could become increasingly divisive and out of sync with today’s flexible private pensions world.”
Ill health isn’t the only reason older employees dial back their working hours, though. Many pensioners play an important role in the economy as providers of free childcare.
“Our research shows that 59% of grandparents are relied upon to provide free childcare for their grandchildren, saving families a combined £90 billion in childcare costs,” says Mark Screeton, chief executive at SunLife.
“If the state pension age were to rise [further or more quickly], it could have a knock-on effect on families across the UK who will no longer be able to rely on grandparents to help out as they themselves could still be working.”
Finally, increases to the state pension age will leave households reliant on their private pension savings for longer, if they decide to quit the workplace before claiming their state pension.
This comes at a time when many savers are already struggling with a pension shortfall thanks to the higher cost of living. A study from Phoenix Group last year showed that a quarter of adults never expect to retire. Meanwhile, others are having to come out of retirement for fear of running out of money before they die.
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