UK State Pensions in New Zealand

Most Brits who settle in New Zealand are eligible for the New Zealand state retirement pension, New Zealand Superannuation.

Some of your pension payment may come from the UK government, but the New Zealand government tops it up to equal NZ Superannuation. If your UK pension is more than the UK State Pension you may receive this instead.

The UK and New Zealand governments have a social security agreement in place to sort out how pensions are paid to people who have lived in NZ and the UK. Basically this means that:

• You can use your years of residence in the UK to count towards the residence requirements for New Zealand Superannuation
• You cannot claim full entitlements from both the UK and New Zealand state pensions
• If your UK state pension is worth more than New Zealand Superannuation, you can receive your UK pension direct from the UK government
• If your UK state pension entitlement is worth less than New Zealand Superannuation, the UK government will effectively pay part of your pension and the NZ government will top up the rest

Please note that any pension payment you receive from an overseas government must be declared to the New Zealand IRD if you are living in New Zealand.

UK Retirement Age:

The age of eligibility for the UK State Retirement Pension is increasing from 65 to 68 in increments until 2046. This will affect you if you were born after April 1959. If you are living in New Zealand you may start claiming your NZ Superannuation before you qualify for the UK State Pension.

To find out when you will be eligible for the UK State Pension, check The Pension Service's State Pension Age Calculator.

Women born before April 1955:

Women in the UK have previously qualified for their UK State Pension at the age of 60, but this is being increased to 65 over the next few years. Women born between April 1950 and April 1955 will qualify for their UK pensions between the ages of 60 and 65. Women born after April 1955 will qualify for their UK State Pension at the age of 65.

If you were born before 1955 you may be eligible for a UK pension before you are eligible for New Zealand Superannuation. You will need to contact the Pension Service in the UK direct to receive this payment, and you need to declare this payment to the IRD. Once you reach 65 and become eligible for NZ Superannuation, the payment will either be folded into your New Zealand Superannuation (if it is worth less than NZ Superannuation) or replace it (if it is worth more than NZ Superannuation) as normal.

To find out when you will be eligible for the UK State Pension, check The Pension Service's State Pension Age Calculator.

National Insurance Contributions:

If you were born before 1945 you need 44 years of National Insurance Contributions to qualify for the full Basic State Retirement Pension - if you were born after 1945 you need 30 years of NI Contributions.

Under the International Social Security Agreement in place between New Zealand and the UK, years you have lived in the UK also count towards the residence requirement for New Zealand Superannuation, and years you have lived in New Zealand count towards your UK State Retirement Pension if you return to live in the UK. It is seldom worth continuing or "topping up" your National Insurance contributions in the UK while you are living in New Zealand.

For current UK State Pension rates, see www.thepensionservice.gov.uk/state-pension/basic/how-much-will-i-get.asp.

Applying for a State Pension Forecast

To find out how much UK state pension you are eligible for, you can apply for a State Pension Forecast from the Department for Work and Pensions. This will include information on your Basic State Pension, Additional State Pension (or SERPS), and Graduated Retirement Benefit. You need to complete form BR19, which is available at: www.thepensionservice.gov.uk/resourcecentre/br19/home.asp

The DSS website for pensions is www.thepensionservice.gov.uk. If you are living in New Zealand you will probably deal with the International Pension Centre.

It can take around 6 months for your UK pension entitlement to be calculated. You are obliged to claim UK benefits if you are eligible for them – when you apply for New Zealand Superannuation there is a section where you fill in which countries you have lived in since you turned 20. If you indicate that you have lived in the UK they will send you the forms to fill in to claim any UK pensions.

Read on for the second part of this article, Receiving UK State Pension Payments in New Zealand.

Broadbase International will work with you every step of the way to help you make a confident start to your new life in New Zealand. Please contact us if you have any questions about the financial side of life in New Zealand, and don't forget to order your free copy of our comprehensive New Zealand Guide.