The National Health Service Pension Scheme Regulations 1995

Right to buy additional service

Q1.—(1) Subject to the provisions of this regulation and regulations Q3 (2) and (6) (electing to buy additional service), Q4 (paying by single payment) and Q6 (paying by regular additional contributions), a member in pensionable employment may increase his rights to benefits under the scheme, by buying additional service.

(2) The member may choose to pay for additional service by making a single payment in accordance with regulation Q4 or by making regular additional contributions in accordance with regulation Q6 or partly in one way and partly in the other.

(3) The member must exercise his right to buy additional service within the time limits described in regulation Q4 or, as the case may be, regulation Q6 and before becoming entitled to a pension under regulation E1 (normal retirement pension) or L1 (preserved pension).

(4) Any period of additional service that the member buys will count as pensionable service for all of the purposes of the scheme, except—

(a)for the purpose of calculating whether and, if so, by how much the member’s pensionable service should be (or, where the member dies in pensionable employment, would have been) increased as described in regulation E2 (early retirement pension on grounds of ill–health); and

(b)for the purpose of calculating the member’s qualifying service in accordance with regulation C3 (meaning of qualifying service).

(5) For the purposes of regulation G7 (widower’s pension), if a woman exercised her right to buy additional service before 6th April 1988, the additional service bought as a result of the exercise of that right will be treated as service before 6th April 1988.

(6) Subject to paragraph (7) and regulation C2(3), the maximum period of additional service that the member may buy is the period set out in the following table opposite the number of years of pensionable service that the member could complete if he stayed in pensionable employment until age 60. A member who could not complete at least 9 years pensionable service prior to reaching age 60 may not buy any additional service.

(7) The member’s right to buy additional service is subject to any limits imposed by the Inland Revenue.

(8) Where a special class officer buys a period of additional service, the amount of the benefits attributable to that period of additional service will be those that would be payable in the case of a member who is not a special class officer.

(9) Where a member, following a break in pensionable employment in respect of which he received a refund of contributions which has not been repaid, rejoins the scheme, he may buy all or any part of the previous pensionable service provided that the employment giving rise to that service was not employment to which the contracting–out requirements applied.