People born between 6 August 1960 and 5 September 1960 will be the next group affected by the revised timetable. According to the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), they will have to wait until they reach 66 years and five months before becoming eligible to receive their State Pension.
The increase follows legislation that changed both the timing and the method of introducing the higher State Pension age. Rather than moving everyone to a new qualifying age on a single date, eligibility is now increasing in monthly stages depending on an individual’s date of birth.
The amount people receive also continues to depend on their National Insurance record. According to GOV.UK, the full rate of the new State Pension is currently £241.30 a week, although some pensioners receive less or more depending on their contribution history and whether they built up entitlement under previous arrangements.
August Marks the Next Stage of the Phased Pension Age Increase
The State Pension age began rising from 66 to 67 on 6 April 2026 through a phased timetable that will continue until 2028. According to the DWP, people born between 6 April 1960 and 5 March 1961 will reach State Pension age at 66 years plus a specified number of additional months.
From August, the next stage applies to those born between 6 August 1960 and 5 September 1960. Under the timetable, they will become eligible to claim their State Pension at the age of 66 years and five months.
For example, someone born on 6 August 1960 will qualify for their State Pension on 6 January 2027, when they reach exactly 66 years and five months. The timetable then continues to increase by one additional month for successive birth groups until people born between 6 March 1961 and 5 April 1977 reach State Pension age at 67.
The DWP states that the Pensions Act 2014 brought forward the increase in the State Pension age from 66 to 67 by eight years and introduced the phased approach now being implemented.
Weekly Payment Depends on National Insurance Record
Eligibility for the State Pension does not automatically mean everyone receives the same amount. According to GOV.UK, the full rate of the new State Pension is £241.30 per week, but the actual payment depends on an individual’s National Insurance record.
People with fewer qualifying years may receive less than the full amount. Those whose National Insurance record began after April 2016 generally need 35 qualifying years to receive the full new State Pension. People whose record started before April 2016 may require more than 35 qualifying years if they were contracted out, during which time lower National Insurance contributions were paid into the State Pension while more went into a workplace or private pension.
Some pensioners receive more than the standard weekly rate through a protected payment if they built up entitlement to the Additional State Pension before 2016. GOV.UK also states that the new State Pension increases each year by whichever is highest between average earnings growth, inflation measured by the Consumer Prices Index, or 2.5%, while any protected payment rises in line with the Consumer Prices Index.
