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Pensions Act (Northern Ireland) 2012

Section 1: Equalisation of and increase in pensionable age for men and women

Section 1 amends the rules for determining State Pension age for men and women as set out in paragraph 1 of Schedule 2 to the 1995 Order.

Subsection (2) amends sub-paragraph (1) to provide that men born before 6th December 1953, rather than those born before 6th April 1959, will continue to attain State Pension age on their 65th birthday.

Subsection (3) omits sub-paragraph (4) as a woman born between the relevant dates will now reach State Pension age on her 66th birthday.

Subsection (4) amends the timetable which sets out when a woman born on a particular date reaches State Pension age during the transition from 60 to 65. The transition is accelerated, so that instead of increasing in one-month increments, State Pension age increases in increments of three months, as laid out in the table below:

(1)(2)(3)(4)(5)
Date of BirthDate State Pension age Reached under Current timetableAge on date in (2) (years/months)*Date State Pension age reached under revised timetableAge on date in (4) (years/months)*
*

Note: Those born on the last day of the period in column (1) will in fact be one day older than indicated in columns (3) and (5), for example, a woman born on 5th May 1953 will be aged 63 years, 0 months and 1 day on the day she would reach current state pension age.

6 April 1953

to

5 May 1953

6 May 201663.1 – 63.06 July 201663.3 – 63.2

6 May 1953

to

5 June 1953

6 July 201663.2 – 63.16 Nov 201663.6 – 63.5

6 June 1953

to

5 July 1953

6 Sept 201663.3 – 63.26 March 201763.9 – 63.8

6 July 1953

to

5 Aug 1953

6 Nov 201663.4 – 63.36 July 201764.0 – 63.11

6 Aug 1953

to

5 Sept 1953

6 Jan 201763.5 – 63.46 Nov 201764.3 – 64.2

6 Sept 1953

to

5 Oct 1953

6 March 201763.6 – 63.56 March 201864.6 – 64.5

6 Oct 1953

to

5 Nov 1953

6 May 201763.7 – 63.66 July 201864.9 – 64.8

6 Nov 1953

to

5 Dec 1953

6 July 201763.8 – 63.76 Nov 201865.0 – 64.11

Subsection (5) replaces Table 2, which provides for the transition from 65 to 66 for men and women between April 2024 and April 2026, with the revised timetable.

Subsection (6) amends sub-paragraph (7) which provides that people born on or after 6th April 1960 (namely those born after the last group affected by the schedule in Table 2) but before 6th April 1968 will have a State Pension age of 66. With the revisions made by subsection (5), anyone born on or after 6th October 1954 but before 6th April 1968 will now also reach State Pension age on their 66th birthday.

Subsection (7) introduces Schedule 1 (equalisation of and increase in pensionable age for men and women: consequential amendments).

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Text created by the Northern Ireland Assembly department responsible for the subject matter of the Act to explain what the Act sets out to achieve and to make the Act accessible to readers who are not legally qualified. Explanatory Notes accompany all Acts of the Northern Ireland Assembly.

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