The upcoming festive period will see millions of Britons receive their state pension payments early next month.
Benefit payment dates change depending on what type a person receives, and knowing the typical day they land can help people budget for the month accordingly.
However, payment dates can change during months with bank holidays – and December boasts two of them.
According to the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), if a payment date is due to fall on a weekend or bank holiday, people are usually paid on the working day before.
This means some state pensioners may receive an early cash boost in December.
When will benefits be paid in December?
There are two bank holidays in December – Christmas Day and Boxing day – which are dyue to fall on Wednesday 25 and Thursday 26 next month.
This means state pensioners who are due to receive their payments on either of these days will receive the cash on the working day before, which will be Tuesday, December 24 (Christmas Eve).
The state pension is usually paid ever four weeks. Claimants can work out their next benefit payment date based on this information by checking when they last received one.
How much is the state pension increasing?
Rachel Reeves, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, has confirmed that the state pension will rise in line with the triple lock next year.
Under the “triple lock” guarantee, the state pension rises each April in line with the highest of three measures: average earnings growth between May and July, CPI inflation in September, or 2.5 percent.
Wage growth had the highest figure, which was 4.1%, and this is the rate state pensions will rise in April 2025.
The new state pension is paid to:
- Men born on or after April 6, 1951
- Women born on or after April 6, 1953.
To receive any rate of state pension, people must have at least 10 qualifying years on their National Insurance record.
The number of qualifying years on this record is used to determine how much state pension a person will receive but usually, to get the full rate, a person should have at least 30.
The basic state pension is paid to:
- Men born before April 6, 1951
- Women born before April 6, 1953.
Based on the 4.1% increase, the DWP has confirmed the new payment rates in April 2025 will be:
New state pension rate
Old/basic state pension rates
- Category A or B Basic State Pension: £176.45 per week (from £169.50)
- Category B (lower) Basic State Pension – spouse or civil: £105.70 per week (from £101.55)
- Partner’s insurance: £103.30 per week (from £101.55)
- Category C or D – non-contributory: £103.30 per week (from £101.55).
