Scottish Parliamentary Pensions Act 2009

Pension credit members

91 (1) A “pension credit member” is an individual on whom rights are conferred by the Fund trustees in accordance with paragraph 1(2) of Schedule 5 to the Welfare Reform and Pensions Act 1999 (c. 30).

(2) It is for the Fund trustees to determine the benefits to which a pension credit member is to be entitled.

But those benefits may consist only of—

(a) a right to be paid a pension from the age of 65,

(b) a right to commute a portion of that pension into a lump sum,

(c) a right to take early retirement when aged between 60 and 65 and accordingly to be paid a reduced pension,

(d) a right to be paid a lump sum instead of a pension where the member has not yet received a pension and is not expected to live for longer than one year because of a health condition,

(e) a right to be paid a lump sum instead of a pension where that lump sum would be a trivial commutation lump sum for the purposes of Part 1 of Schedule 29 to the Finance Act 2004 (c. 12),

(f) where a pension credit member dies within 5 years of first receiving a pension, a right to have the pension paid to a surviving partner, dependant children or personal representatives for the remainder of the 5 year period,

(g) where a pension credit member dies before first receiving a pension, a right to have a lump sum paid to a surviving partner, dependant children or personal representatives of an amount equal to 25% of the cash equivalent of the benefits attributable to the corresponding pension credit (within the meaning of Chapter 4 of Part 4 to the Pension Schemes Act 1993 (c. 48)).

(3) An individual’s benefits as a pension credit member are to be provided separately from any other benefits to which the individual may be entitled under the scheme.

(4) A rule which extinguishes an individual’s right to receive scheme benefits on being paid a lump sum does not extinguish any separate rights which the individual may have to receive benefits as a pension credit member (or as a surviving partner, dependant child or personal representative of such a member).