The State Pension age still stands at 66, but will rise from next year
State pensioners have been issued a warning that they will no longer be able to claim six benefits.
The State Pension age remains at 66, but those who are retired will no longer be able to claim benefits from the government, which deems them invalid for those of working age.
One of these benefits is the Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA), an unemployment benefit people can claim while looking for work.
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Additionally, pensioners will no longer be able to claim the Employment and Support Allowance (ESA), an income-related benefit for those with a disability or health condition that affects the ability to work.
The New Style Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) will also be unavailable, a benefit for people who are ill or have a health condition or disability that limits their ability to work.
The fourth benefit to cease will be the Income Support and Universal Credit, as well as Bereavement Support Payment and Widowed Parent’s Allowance.
Turn2us, which has a benefits calculator, said: “If you live with a partner and one of you is pension age and the other is not yet pension age, benefit entitlement can be complicated.”
It comes as the State Pension age is set to rise from April 2026, bringing the age up from 66 to 67.
Those born after 6 March 1961 will have a state pension age of 67, with a potential further increase to 68 in the future.
The Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) said: “The Pensions Act 2014 set out the timescale for the increase in State Pension age from 66 to 67, affecting those born between 6 April 1960 and 5 March 1961.
“Anyone born between these dates should check their State Pension age to find out the earliest point at which they’ll be eligible for their State Pension.”
A new report from the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) has claimed that raising the state pension age has the “potential to be positive” to workers’ health.
IFS economists said: “We found that being in paid work is good for the cognitive functioning of women in their early 60s, on average.”
The ones to benefit the most were single women, particularly in cognitive functioning.
They added: “This suggests that it is those who live alone, who are more likely to see a drop in social interactions upon retirement, who gained the most from the stimulation of work.”
