Older state pensioners given £647 extra cash after AP payments boost | Personal Finance | Finance
Older state pensioners are being handed up to nearly £647 per year from this April on top of their standard weekly state pension payments, the DWP has confirmed.
That’s because many older state pensioners are also eligible for additional ‘increments’ on top of their basic state pension amount from an older scheme called Additional Pension (AP).
Additional Pension is the umbrella term for a range of extra pension schemes which older state pensioners were able to make use of before the basic state pension was phased out and replaced in 2016 with the new state pension.
AP includes schemes like State Earnings Related Pension Scheme (SERPS) and Second State Pension.
Though it can no longer be claimed by state pensioners retiring now, those who took part in the schemes can still get AP payments every week.
And the maximum AP payment available to older state pensioners has been increased by the Treasury and the DWP from April.
From April 6, older state pensioners will see their maximum possible AP payments increase from £222.10 per week to £230.54 per week. Over a year, that’s an extra £646.88 extra cash.
This is on top of the basic state pension payment, which is rising from £176.45 to £184.90 at the same time, for an older pre-2016 state pensioner with a full National Insurance record.
New state pensioners are only eligible for the new state pension payment, which has been increased from £230.25 to £241.30 per week.
In this way, by using AP, an older state pensioner could be getting paid more per week than a new state pensioner.
Consumer magazine Which? explains: “Before 2002, you could only contribute to the additional state pension (then known as the state earnings-related pension scheme, or Serps) if you were employed.
“However, under the state second pension scheme, which ran from 2002 to 2016, you could contribute through your National Insurance contributions if you were:
caring for one or more children under 12 and claiming child benefit
claiming certain disability-related benefits.”
It adds: “There is no fixed amount for the additional state pension.
“The amount of additional state pension you’ll get depends on how many years you paid National Insurance for, how much you earned and whether you contracted out of the scheme.
“The maximum additional state pension you can get in 2026-27 is £230.54 a week (not including state pension top-up).”
