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UK State Pension
Claiming Your UK State Pension While Living Abroad
The UK State Pension is part of the Government’s pension arrangements. Anyone can make a claim, provided they have a minimum number of qualifying years of contributions. Benefits vary depending on the age of the individual and their contribution record.
Can I receive my state pension if I live abroad?
Yes, you can. Wherever you live in the world, you will be able to receive your state pension. The annual increases will only incur though if you live in the European Economic Area (EEA), Gibraltar, Switzerland or any country which has a social security agreement with the UK.
Can I make contributions if I'm overseas?
You are able to top up your UK state pension overseas if you have worked at least 10 years or been a UK resident for 10 consecutive years before moving overseas. As of the Autumn Budget 2025, you can now only pay class 3 contributions to the UK state pension system.
How do I know what I will recieve from my state pension?
You can visit the UK gov website to find out what you are entitled to. You need at least 10 years to be entitled to a UK state pension and 35 years to receive a full one.
State Retirement Age
This will differ depending on the year you were born. From 2019, the State Pension age increased for both men and women to reach 66 by October 2020. The Government is planning further increases, which will raise the State Pension age from 66 to 67 between 2026 and 2028
Annual Increases
State pensions increase each year based on the measurement of Consumer Prices Index (CPI) Inflation or 3%, whichever is the highest. This has gone up from 2.5%, a very good increase for pensioners.
Overseas
Pensioners living overseas will only benefit from increases if they live in the European Economic Area (EEA), Gibraltar, Switzerland or any country which has a social security agreement with the UK. Otherwise, there will be no increases whatsoever.