The National Health Service Superannuation Scheme (Scotland) Regulations 2011

Right to buy additional service

Q1.—(1) Subject to the provisions of this regulation and regulations Q3 (paying by single payment) and Q5 (paying by regular additional contributions) a member in pensionable employment may increase the member’s rights to benefits by buying additional pensionable service in accordance with the regulations in this Part.

(2) A member may only increase the member’s rights to benefits by buying additional service, other than service to which paragraph (16) refers, if—

(a) the member has given notice of the member’s intention to exercise that right—

(i) in writing; or

(ii) in such other form as the Scottish Ministers agree to accept;

(b) that notice was received by the member’s employing authority or this Section of the scheme administrator on or before 31st March 2008;

(c) the Scottish Ministers accept an election to pay for additional service under regulation Q6; and

(d) the member makes regular additional contributions in respect of that election from a birthday that falls between 1st April 2008 and 31st March 2009.

(3) A member buying additional service to which paragraph (16) refers, may choose to pay for that additional service by—

(a) making a single payment in accordance with regulation Q3;

(b) making regular additional contributions in accordance with regulation Q5; or

(c) a combination of payments described in sub-paragraphs (a) and (b).

(4) A member buying additional service other than that to which paragraph (16) refers, must pay for that additional service by making regular additional contributions in accordance with regulation Q5.

(5) A member must exercise the member’s right to buy additional service within the time limits described in regulation Q3 or, as the case may be, regulation Q5 and before becoming entitled to receive a pension under regulation E1 (normal retirement pension) or E12 (preserved pension).

(6) Any period of additional service that a member buys will count as pensionable service for all the purposes of this Section 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 (ill health)) or E3 (ill health pension on early retirement); and

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

(7) 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 that exercise of her right will be treated as service before 6th April 1988.

(8) For the purposes of regulation G10 (surviving civil partner’s pension) if a civil partner exercised the civil partner’s 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.

(9) For the purpose of regulation G14 (surviving nominated partner’s pension) if a member who has a nominated partner exercised the member’s 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.

(10) Subject to paragraph (14) and regulation C2(4), the maximum period of additional service that a 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 (“potential years of service”) if the member stayed in pensionable employment until age 60 or, in the case of a special class officer, age 55:—

Potential years of service	Maximum period of additional service that member may buy
9	1 year
10	2 years
11	3 years
12	4 years
13	5 years
14	7 years
15	9 years
16	11 years
17	13 years
18	15 years
19	17 years
20 or more	20 years

(11) A member who will not be able to complete at least 9 years’ pensionable service prior to reaching age 60 or, in the case of a special class officer, age 55 may not buy any additional service.

(12) A member who—

(a) joined this Section of the scheme on or after 17th March 1987;

(b) has made an application prior to 1st September 1997 to buy additional service; and

(c) does not commence making payments under regulation Q5 until on or after 1st September 1997,

may, up until and including 31st August 1998, elect that paragraph (10) shall cease to apply to that member.

(13) Paragraph (10) ceases to apply to a member who—

(a) joined this Section of the scheme on or after 17th March 1987;

(b) makes an application on or after 1st September 1997 to buy additional service; and

(c) commences payments under regulation Q5 on or after 1st September 1997.

(14) Subject to paragraph (17), the member’s right to buy additional service is subject to any limits imposed by Revenue and Customs.

(15) 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.

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

(17) Except in the case of a pension debit member who is a moderate earner, a member may not replace any rights debited as a consequence of a pension sharing order with any rights which the member would not have been able to acquire (in addition to the debited rights) had the pension sharing order not been made.

(18) For the purposes of paragraph (17)—

“moderate earner” means a member whose pensionable pay during the tax year preceding the tax year in which the member’s marriage or civil partnership is dissolved or annulled is not more than 25 per cent. of the permitted maximum for the tax year in which the dissolution or annulment occurred;

“pension debit member” means a person whose shareable rights under this Section of the scheme are subject to a debit under section 29(1)(a) of the 1999 Act;

“permitted maximum” means the same as in section 590C of the Taxes Act (earnings cap); and

“tax year” means any year beginning on 6th April and ending on 5th April the following year.