Background
The State Pension is a "contribution-based" benefit, and depends on an individual's National Insurance (NI) contribution history. For someone with the 30 qualifying years (years in which NI contributions were paid), it is payable at a flat rate of £107.45 a week (2012–13). A smaller, pro-rata, pension is paid to someone with fewer qualifying years. An "age addition" of 25p a week is paid to people over 80.
The Basic State Pension is increased in April each year to pensioners living in the UK and in certain overseas countries which have a Social Security Agreement with the UK that includes British pension uprating. Pensioners living in other overseas countries without a current agreement have their pensions frozen at the rate in effect on the date when they left the UK, or on the date when they applied for a pension, whichever is later.
Read more about this topic: UK State Pension
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—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)