This section explains what your options are and the different ways to convert your pension fund into income.

When you retire, you can usually take part of your pension fund as a tax-free lump sum. The remainder of your fund must be used to provide you with an income. If you have a money purchase pension, you can do this in various ways, for example using annuities or unsecured pension options. We explain briefly how they work and the things you need to consider before deciding which to choose. For more information get a free copy of our Retirement options printed guide. You can download or order it online – see Free printed guides.

If you're getting a pension from an occupational salary-related (defined benefit) pension scheme, your income in retirement is provided by your employer's pension scheme direct. So you don't need to make any of the retirement choices mentioned here. Talk to your pension scheme administrators for more information.

If you have a money purchase pension scheme (occupational defined contribution, a personal or stakeholder pension), this section is for you. For information on types of pensions – see Pensions.

For information about receiving your State pensions, see The Pensions and Retirement Planning section of the Directgov website. Or you can find out more from The Pensions Advisory Service – see Related links.

Retirement means when you start to take benefits from your pension. You can usually do this from age 50, but the minimum age from which you can take your benefits is going up from 50 to 55 by April 2010. The precise timing may vary between pension schemes, so check with your pension provider.

Since April 2006 retirement has become much more flexible than in the past. You have more options; for example, you can:

For more information get a free copy of our Pensions and Retiring soon booklets. You can download or order them online – see Free printed guides.