NHS Pensions

Making your decision about your NHS Pension benefits

Every Public Service Pension Scheme is working through significant complexity to put in place the Public Service Pensions Remedy for all affected members

As the largest Scheme, the NHS Pension Scheme has made substantial progress towards implementing the remedy so affected members can make their choice with confidence. 

On 31 March 2025, the Department of Health and Social Care announced that the deadlines for Remediable Service Statements (RSS) have been extended. This will ensure that we can provide robust, accurate statements that allow members to make informed decisions about their public service pensions remedy ('McCloud') benefits.

For more information, read our news article 'Government announces extension to Remediable Service Statements (RSS) delivery deadlines', updated on 31 March 2025. 

If you're affected by the changes to public service pension schemes – sometimes known as ‘McCloud’ or the public service pensions remedy, you'll be asked if you would like to receive legacy scheme or reform scheme pension benefits for your membership between 1 April 2015 and 31 March 2022. This is called the remedy period.

If you're retiring, we'll contact you and ask you to make your choice at a later time. We’ll provide you with information at the time to help you make your decision.

Asking you to make this choice when you retire means you’ll know exactly what you’re entitled to under each option. This will make it easier to decide what’s best for you.

Your service for the remedy period will be automatically moved into your legacy scheme until you’ve made your choice. This is called rollback. Read more about rollback.

For now, all our processes remain the same and there’s nothing you need to do. We’ll contact all affected members directly when action needs to be taken.

Government announces extension to Remediable Service Statements (RSS) delivery deadlines 

On 31 March 2025, the Department of Health and Social Care announced that the deadlines for Remediable Service Statements (RSS) have been extended. This will ensure that we can provide robust, accurate statements that allow members to make informed decisions about their public service pension remedy ('McCloud') benefits. 

Technical complexities that extend beyond the NHS Pension Scheme have affected delivery timelines for RSS. We continue to do all we can to issue RSS as quickly as possible to all affected members.  

The new timelines for RSS delivery have separated members into different cohorts, with those most likely to be at detriment as a result of McCloud being prioritised.  

Following a recent written ministerial statement, the timetable for the delivery of remediable service statements to NHS Pension Scheme members will be updated.  

We appreciate that this news will be disappointing for NHS Pension Scheme members affected by the Public Sector Pensions Remedy (‘McCloud’). We apologise for the delays and assure our members that we are working hard to deliver Remediable Saving Statements (RSS) this as quickly as possible.  

We will provide regular updates to Scheme members as soon as updated timelines are confirmed. We will also publish a revised McCloud delivery timetable on our website. 

You may be able to ask for your choice sooner

You do not need to do anything to get your choice - we’ll automatically contact remedy members. For most remedy members, waiting to hear from us will not have any negative effect on their options, but we understand there are some circumstances where remedy members need to make their choice more urgently.

A) You can ask to make your choice sooner if one of the following applies:

  1. You’re a retired member with a shortened life expectancy of less than 12 months. You can apply to get your choice as soon as possible whether your benefits have been paid as one lump sum or you receive them as monthly payments.
  2. Whilst a member of the 2015 scheme, you applied for ill health retirement during the remedy period - between 1 April 2015 and 31 March 2022 - but you were not successful and currently receive an NHS pension.
  3. You’re still working but you’ve received a diagnosis of serious ill health that may mean you're eligible for Tier 2 ill health pension benefits – which you can apply to take as a single lump sum if you have a shortened life expectancy of less than 12 months.

This means you’ll be able to decide sooner about the benefits that are right for you and for your family.

B) You can also ask to make your choice sooner if you are in receipt of benefits and meet all the following criteria:

  • you had ‘tapered protection’ from moving to the 2015 Scheme - this means you were able to stay in the 1995/2008 Scheme after 1 April 2015, but had to move into the 2015 Scheme before 31 March 2022
  • you had Special Class or Mental Health Officer (MHO) status during this period
  • you reached the Scheme’s maximum service limit of 45 years during this period, or you would have done so had you not moved into the 2015 Scheme

For a small number of remedy members who meet all the criteria above and already in receipt of benefits, you may need to repay overpaid pension depending on which Scheme benefits you choose. The sooner you can make your choice, the less you may need to repay.

To request your choice early, please email us at fast-tracksupport@nhsbsa.nhs.uk and we’ll get back to you within 7 to 10 working days. Please let us know which of the reasons from the list above apply. For example, state A) 2. or B), so we can give you the appropriate support quickly.

You do not need to pay to get your McCloud choice

Some companies charge fees to help members with their McCloud choice. You do not need to use a paid service – doing this will not mean you’re given your choice any sooner or affect the options you have.

NHS Pensions will automatically contact all eligible members as soon as it is possible and give you the information you need to help you make your decision.

For the majority of members, their choice will be straightforward, and guidance will be provided to help them make an informed decision. The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has said that they expect only a small number of affected members will require support from an independent financial adviser or accountant regarding their McCloud remedy.  

Where the small number of members with particularly complex circumstances seek advice and the department agrees that this advice was required, there will be a scheme available to help them submit evidence and claim back the cost of this advice. We’ll publish more information about this in the coming months.  

Finding more information

If you have any questions, you’ll find more information on our knowledge base. 

Visit our Member Hub for information on applying for your pension and flexibilities within the NHS Pension Scheme to help you transition from work to retirement.

 

Page last updated: 07/07/2025

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