The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) made changes to the NHS Pension Scheme rules to enable NHS staff to work more flexibly up to and beyond retirement age.
If you are a member with 1995 Section benefits, you can:
- return to NHS employment after retirement and build up more pension benefits in the 2015 Scheme
- take partial retirement, meaning you can take some or all of your pension without having to leave your job
These options are already available to members of the 2008 Section and 2015 Scheme.
Find out more about rejoining the 2015 Scheme after retiring and returning
Visit our re-employment page on the Pensioner hub.
Partial retirement changes in 2023
From 1 October 2023
Members with 1995 Section benefits now have partial retirement options
This means once you reach your minimum pension age, you can claim up to 100% of your 1995 Section benefits. You can also continue to work and build up further pension in the 2015 Scheme.
Members with 2008 Section and 2015 Scheme benefits have more partial retirement options
The maximum amount of pension you can claim increased from 80% to 100%.
Non-pensionable members from the 1995 and 2008 Sections can join the 2015 Scheme
If you were a non-pensionable member of the 1995 and 2008 Sections because you exceeded the maximum service limits, you can now join the 2015 Scheme.
From 1 April 2023
Retired members who have claimed their 1995 Section benefits can return to work in the NHS and build up benefits in the 2015 Scheme
If you have retired and claimed your 1995 Section benefits, you can return to work in the NHS and build up new benefits in the 2015 Scheme. You can already do this if you have benefits in the 2008 Section or 2015 Scheme.
The removal of the 16-hour rule
If you are a member of the 1995 Section, you can take your pension benefits, return to work and work as many hours as you choose. As long as you've had a break of at least 24 hours from your previous job.
