Applying for your pension

1995 Section pension benefits - age 60 or 55 if you have Special Class status

You’ll get a pension and retirement lump sum based on your scheme membership and the best of your last 3 years’ pensionable pay.

2008 Section pension benefits - age 65

You'll get a pension based on your scheme membership and reckonable pay. Your reckonable pay is the average of the best 3 consecutive years’ pay in the last 10.

2015 Scheme pension benefits - same as your State Pension age or age 65 if that is later

You will get a pension based on 1/54th of your pensionable pay for each year that you have contributed to the scheme.

The pension you get is increased each year by a method known as revaluation. 

Before you apply

Read the age retirement factsheet (PDF: 160KB) for more about how we calculate your NHS Pension.

The earliest age you can draw your pension is the minimum pension age.

We reduce an early retirement pension, as it is being paid early and will be in payment for longer.

The reduction depends on how many years before normal pension age it is being claimed.

1995 Section

If you joined the 1995 Section before 6 April 2006 you can choose to take early retirement from age 50. 

If you joined the 1995 Section on or after 6 April 2006, your minimum pension age is 55 unless you have a protected minimum pension age. If you returned to the scheme after this date, this might also apply to you.

If you have deferred benefits in the 1995 Section and then join the 2008 Section, your minimum pension will be age 55 even if you joined before 6 April 2006.

2008 Section and 2015 Scheme

The minimum pension age is 55.

Before you apply

Read the early retirement factsheet (PDF: 94KB) for more information.

Your benefits may be paid immediately if you retired early due to either:

• redundancy
• the interest of efficiency of the service

Read the redundancy retirement factsheet (PDF: 107KB) for more information.

You may be able to retire early and take your pension benefits if you’ve been, both:

• a member for a minimum 2 years’
• too ill to work in your present job

Information to read before you apply:

Ill health retirement tiers and FAQs (PDF: 197KB)

Ill health retirement assessment factsheet (PDF: 116KB)

Serious ill health (where life expectancy is less than 12 months) (PDF: 111KB)

Information for 1995/2008 members moving to the 2015 Scheme on 1 April 2022

From 1 April 2022 all active members of the NHS Pension Scheme will be members of the 2015 Scheme. If you’re currently a 1995/2008 Scheme and you apply for consideration for ill health retirement, if we receive your application by 31 March 2022 and you are still an active member of the pension scheme from 1 April 2022, your application must be considered against the qualifying rules for both the 1995/2008 Scheme and the 2015 Scheme.

If we receive your application after 31 March 2022 and you are still active from 1 April 2022, your application must be considered against the 2015 Scheme qualifying rules.

This is subject to the outcome of the DHSC consultation on changes to the NHS Pension Scheme regulations which closes on 20 January 2022.

If you're an active member of the NHS Pension Scheme or have opted out of the Scheme but remain in NHS employment and are retiring directly from NHS work, your employer should give you this form. Please complete the form and return it to your employer as soon as you can. To take your benefits in full you must retire for a minimum of 24 hours.

If you have left NHS employment completely and are claiming deferred pension benefits or have some retained NHS pension rights a deferred benefits claim form (AW8P) form can be downloaded and printed from our website at: www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/nhs-pensions. Please complete the form and return it to us at the address on the form.

If you are a Pension Credit member an application form (AW8PC) can be downloaded and printed from our website at: www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/nhs-pensions. Please complete the form and return it to us at the address on the form

Deferred benefits claim form (AW8P) (PDF: 707KB)Application form for Pension Credit Benefits from Divorce (AW8PC) (PDF: 363KB)AW8/AW8P/AW8PC Member checklist (PDF: 164KB)​​​​​​

Consideration of entitlement for early payment of deferred benefits due to ill health (AW240) (PDF: 398KB)Guidance notes for the registered medical practitioner completing form AW240 Part 2 (PDF: 135KB)Pension Credit member - Consideration of entitlement for early payment of deferred benefits due to ill health (AW240(PC)) (PDF: 328KB)Application to commute ill-health retirement benefits (AW341) (PDF: 167KB)Application to commute age retirement benefits on grounds of serious ill-health (AW341a) (PDF: 156KB)