Accessing Your Pension

Minimum access age 57 from 2028

Tax-free lump sum 25%

Pension freedoms Since 2015

Drawdown vs annuity Compare your options →

What do you need to know?

Jump straight to the guide that answers your question.

When can I access my pension?

Normal minimum pension age, the rise to 57 in 2028, protected ages, and ill-health early access explained.

Pension freedoms

How the 2015 reforms removed the requirement to buy an annuity and opened up flexible ways to use your pension.

Tax-free cash

How the 25% tax-free lump sum works, the limits that apply, and how to decide whether to take it all at once.

Annuities

Trading some or all of your pot for a guaranteed income for life, and how annuity rates are worked out.

Income drawdown

Keeping your pension invested while drawing a flexible income, and the risks of running your pot down too fast.

Pension income calculator

Model how different access choices could affect the income your pension provides through retirement.

Sooner or later, every pension saver reaches the same crossroads: deciding when and how to actually start using the money they've built up.

It's one of the biggest financial decisions most people make, and unlike the saving phase, which happens gradually and often automatically through auto-enrolment, accessing your pension usually involves a series of active choices, each with its own rules, tax implications, and trade-offs.

This section is your guide to that whole decision-making process, from the moment you first become eligible to draw on your pension through to choosing how the money is actually paid to you.