Millions of older Brits will see their state pension payments increase by up to £474 from this April.

The state pension is set to rise by 4.1% from April 7. This is in line with the triple lock promise, which guarantees the state pension goes up by whichever is highest out of inflation (using the previous September inflation figure), wages (average growth between May and July) or 2.5%.

This year, state pension payments are rising by wage growth, which was confirmed to be 4.1%. The latest figures published by the government this week revealed that the number of people claiming the state pension hit 13million in August 2024 – an increase of 203,000 from the previous August.

But how much you get in state pension payments depends on your National Insurance record. The full new state pension is currently worth £221.20 a week, or £11,502.40 a year – this will rise by £230.25 a week, or £11,973 a year, from this April. This means the maximum increase is worth £470.60 a year. You’ll claim the new state pension if you’re a man born on or after April 6, 1951, or if you’re a woman born on or after April 6, 1953

Meanwhile, the full basic state pension is currently £169.48 a week, or £8,812.96 a year, and will increase to £176.45 a week, or £9,175.61 a year. The maximum increase for someone on the basic state pension is £362.65 a year. The older basic state pension is for men born before April 6, 1951, or women born before April 6, 1953.

For the new state pension, most people need 35 qualifying years on their National Insurance record to get the full amount, and normally ten years to get anything at all. The basic state pension is a bit more complicated to work out. If you’re a man, you normally need 30 qualifying years if you were born between 1945 and 1951, or 44 qualifying years if you were born before 1945, to get the full amount.

To get any basic state pension at all, you typically need one qualifying year if you were born between 1945 and 1951, or 11 qualifying years if you were born before 1945. If you’re a woman, you normally need 30 qualifying years if you were born between 1950 and 1953, or 39 qualifying years if you were born before 1950, to get the full amount. To get any basic state pension at all, you usually need one qualifying year if you were born between 1950 and 1953, or ten qualifying years if you were born before 1950.

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