What Happens to Your State Pension When You Die?

When someone dies in the UK, their state pension payments stop from the date of death, and a surviving husband, wife, or civil partner may be able to inherit part of what the deceased had built up. How much passes on depends on which pension system the deceased was in, their date of birth, and whether they had deferred claiming. Cohabiting partners who were not married or in a civil partnership cannot inherit any state pension, although they may qualify for a separate Bereavement Support Payment in limited circumstances. This is what happens to your state pension when you die, and what the people you leave behind need to do.

Report the Death First

The Department for Work and Pensions needs to know as soon as possible. The fastest route is the Tell Us Once service, which passes the death to HMRC, the passport office, and the pension service in a single notification.¹ The registrar hands you a Tell Us Once reference number when you register the death. You will also need the deceased’s National Insurance number, date of birth, and the details of whoever is dealing with the estate.

If the deceased was living abroad, Tell Us Once does not apply and you contact the International Pension Centre instead.²

Payments That Arrive After the Date of Death

State pension entitlement ends on the day the person dies. Any payment credited to a sole account for a period after that date has to be returned. Banks usually send such credits back once they are told the account holder has died. If the money is not returned, the DWP treats it as an overpayment and will contact the next of kin, the bank, and the person handling the estate to recover it.³

Do not distribute the estate until you know whether anything needs to be repaid. If you distribute first, you can become personally liable for the amount owed.³

What a Surviving Spouse or Civil Partner Can Inherit

The dividing line is 6 April 2016. People who reached state pension age before that date are on the old system of basic state pension plus additional state pension. People who reached it on or after that date are on the new state pension. The inheritance rules differ sharply between the two.

If the Deceased Was on the New State Pension

The new state pension covers men born on or after 6 April 1951 and women born on or after 6 April 1953.⁴ A surviving spouse or civil partner can inherit half of the deceased’s “protected payment,” which is the slice of the new state pension sitting above the full standard rate (usually earned through a large additional state pension or long NI record built up before 2016). You qualify if the marriage or civil partnership began before 6 April 2016 and the deceased either reached state pension age on or after that date or died on or after it.⁵ The inherited amount is added to the survivor’s own weekly pension.

If the deceased had built up additional state pension before 2016 and the marriage or civil partnership began before that date, the survivor may also inherit a portion of that additional pension (see the percentages below).⁵

If the Deceased Was on the Old State Pension

Under the old system there are two separate elements to think about. For the basic state pension, a surviving spouse or civil partner can use the deceased’s National Insurance record to top up their own if it falls short of the full rate (£184.90 a week for 2026/27).⁶⁷ The adjustment happens once the DWP confirms eligibility after the death is reported.

For the additional state pension (SERPS or State Second Pension), the maximum percentage a survivor can inherit depends on the deceased’s date of birth.⁸ For a deceased man:

5 October 1937 or earlier: 100%
6 October 1937 to 5 October 1939: 90%
6 October 1939 to 5 October 1941: 80%
6 October 1941 to 5 October 1943: 70%
6 October 1943 to 5 October 1945: 60%
6 October 1945 or later: 50%

For a deceased woman:

5 October 1942 or earlier: 100%
6 October 1942 to 5 October 1944: 90%
6 October 1944 to 5 October 1946: 80%
6 October 1946 to 5 October 1948: 70%
6 October 1948 to 5 July 1950: 60%
6 July 1950 or later: 50%

Remarriage Before State Pension Age

One rule catches people out. If a widow or widower remarries or enters a new civil partnership before reaching their own state pension age, they lose the right to inherit the additional state pension.⁸ Remarrying after reaching state pension age does not affect entitlement.

If the Deceased Had Deferred Their Pension

Deferring means delaying the start of state pension payments in exchange for a larger amount later. What a survivor can inherit from a deferred pension depends on the system and the length of the deferral.

For an old state pension (deceased reached state pension age before 6 April 2016):⁹

Deferred a year or more: the surviving spouse or civil partner can usually choose between a lump sum and higher weekly payments. The DWP writes with both options.
Deferred between 5 weeks and a year: the extra is paid as weekly increases to the survivor’s own pension; no lump sum is available.
Deferred less than 5 weeks: the unclaimed payments go into the deceased’s estate, not to the survivor directly.

A lump sum is calculated as the unclaimed pension plus interest at 2% above the Bank of England base rate. It is taxable at the survivor’s highest marginal income tax rate, and can push the recipient into a higher band for that year.

For a new state pension, there is no lump sum option. If the deceased deferred and then died, a surviving spouse or civil partner inherits the extra as increased weekly payments.⁵

Divorced or Dissolved: Easy to Miss

If you reached state pension age before 6 April 2016 and a former spouse or civil partner has died, you may be able to use their National Insurance record to increase your own basic state pension. The same can apply if the divorce or dissolution happened within the last 12 months. This is not applied automatically. You have to contact the Pension Service and ask.¹⁰ Many divorced people never realise an ex-partner’s death triggers any entitlement, so if your basic state pension is below the full rate, it is worth checking.

Bereavement Support Payment

Separate from any pension inheritance, a surviving partner under state pension age may qualify for a Bereavement Support Payment, a tax-free, non-means-tested benefit. The 2026/27 rates are:¹¹

Higher rate: £3,500 lump sum plus £350 a month for up to 18 months, if you were pregnant when your partner died or were getting Child Benefit.
Standard rate: £2,500 lump sum plus £100 a month for up to 18 months.

The deceased must have paid a minimum level of National Insurance in at least one tax year since 6 April 1975, or have died from a workplace accident or occupational disease.¹²

Cohabiting partners who were not married or in a civil partnership can claim this payment in one specific set of circumstances: they were living with the deceased as though married and were either getting Child Benefit for a child in the household, entitled to Child Benefit even if not receiving it, or pregnant.¹² Outside that narrow window, unmarried partners receive no state bereavement support and cannot inherit any part of the state pension.

1
GOV.UK. What to Do After Someone Dies – Tell Us Once
2
GOV.UK. Report the Death Without a Tell Us Once Reference Number
3
GOV.UK. Benefit Overpayments – Repayments When Someone Has Died
4
GOV.UK. The Basic State Pension – Who Gets the Basic State Pension
5
GOV.UK. Inheriting or Increasing State Pension From a Spouse or Civil Partner
6
nidirect. Inheriting Basic State Pension
7
GOV.UK. Benefit and Pension Rates 2026 to 2027
8
GOV.UK. Additional State Pension – Inheriting
9
GOV.UK. Inheriting a Deferred State Pension
10
GOV.UK. Increasing or Inheriting State Pension From Your Spouse or Civil Partner
11
GOV.UK. Benefit and Pension Rates 2026 to 2027
12
GOV.UK. Bereavement Support Payment – Eligibility