Legislation – The National Health Service Superannuation and Pension Schemes (Miscellaneous Amendment) (Scotland) Regulations 2025

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Introduction

PART 1
Introductory

1 Citation, commencement and effect

PART 2
Amendments to the National Health Service Superannuation Scheme (Scotland) Regulations 2011

2 General

3 Amendment of regulation C1

4 Amendment of regulation T3

PART 3
Amendments to the National Health Service Pension Scheme (Scotland) (Additional Voluntary Contributions) Regulations 2018

5 General

6 Amendment of regulation 16

PART 4
Amendments to the National Health Service Superannuation Scheme (2008 Section) (Scotland) Regulations 2013

7 General

8 Amendment of regulation 2.A.5

9 Amendment of regulation 2.A.6

10 Amendment of regulation 2.A.9

11 Amendment of regulation 2.A.10

12 Amendment of regulation 2.B.1

13 Amendment of regulation 2.E.22

14 Amendment of regulation 2.J.9

15 Amendment of regulation 3.A.4

16 Amendment of regulation 3.A.5

17 Amendment of regulation 3.A.8

18 Amendment of regulation 3.B.1

19 Amendment of regulation 3.E.22

20 Amendment of regulation 3.J.9

PART 5
Amendments to the National Health Service Pension Scheme (Scotland) Regulations 2015

21 General

22 Amendment of regulation 21

23 New regulation 27A

24 Amendment of regulation 28

25 Amendment of regulation 30

26 Amendment of regulation 31

27 Amendment of regulation 37

28 Amendment of regulation 59

29 Amendment of regulation 67

30 Amendment of Schedule 3

31 Amendment of Schedule 9

32 Amendment of Schedule 10

33 Amendment of Schedule 12

34 Amendment of Schedule 13

PART 6
Amendments to the National Health Service Pension Scheme (Transitional and Consequential Provisions) (Scotland) Regulations 2015

35 General

36 New regulation 36A

37 Amendment of Schedule 1

PART 7
Amendments to the National Health Service Pension Schemes (Remediable Service) (Scotland) Regulations 2023

38 General

39 Amendment of regulation 5

40 Amendment of regulation 7

41 Amendment of regulation 18

Signature

Explanatory note

PART 4Amendments to the National Health Service Superannuation Scheme (2008 Section) (Scotland) Regulations 2013

General7.

The National Health Service Superannuation Scheme (2008 Section) (Scotland) Regulations 201318 are amended in accordance with this Part.

Amendment of regulation 2.A.58.

(1)

Regulation 2.A.5 (pensionable service: breaks in service)19 is amended as follows.

(2)

In paragraph (3), for “(e)” substitute “(f)”.

(3)

In paragraph (4), for “(e)” substitute “(f)”.

Amendment of regulation 2.A.69.

(1)

Regulation 2.A.6(1) (meaning of “qualifying service”) is amended as follows.

(2)

Omit sub-paragraph (i).

(3)

After sub-paragraph (j) insert—

“(k)

in the case of a person who—

(i)

ceased to be an active member of the 1995 Section on leaving NHS employment,

(ii)

became a deferred member of that Section on leaving that employment and has not since become a pensioner member of that Section between the date of leaving that employment and joining this Section of the Scheme, and

(iii)

became an active member of this Section of the Scheme during the period beginning with 1 October 2008 and ending with 31 March 2015 and five years or more since last leaving NHS employment,

a period equal in length to the period of qualifying service which the member is entitled to count under the 1995 Section,

(l)

in the case of a person who—

(i)

was a deferred member of the 1995 Section who gave notice for the purposes of paragraph (1) or (2)20 of regulation B4 of the 2011 Regulations (opting out of this Section of the scheme),

(ii)

as a result of that notice was treated as ceasing to be an active member of that Section,

(iii)

pursuant to that notice remained opted-out of that Section for five years or more, and

(iv)

became an active member of this Section of the Scheme during the period beginning with 1 October 2008 and ending with 31 March 2015,

a period equal in length to the period of qualifying service which the member is entitled to count under the 1995 Section, and

(m)

in the case of a person who—

(i)

was a deferred member of the 1995 Section who gave notice for the purposes of paragraph (1) or (2) of regulation B4 of the 2011 Regulations and following that notice, ceased to be an active member of that Section for any one period of five years or more comprising the aggregate of—

(aa)

any period during which the person left NHS employment, and

(bb)

any period during which the person was treated as never having been an active member of that Section in accordance with paragraph (3)21 of regulation B4 of those Regulations in respect of one or more later periods of NHS employment entered into after having given the notice for the purposes of paragraph (1) or (2) of that regulation, and

(ii)

became an active member of this Section of the Scheme during the period beginning with 1 October 2008 and ending with 31 March 2015,

a period equal in length to the period of qualifying service which the member is entitled to count under the 1995 Section.”.

Amendment of regulation 2.A.910.

In regulation 2.A.9 (meaning of “pensionable pay”), after paragraph (11) insert—

“(12)

Paragraphs (13) to (19) apply to a member who has remediable service within the meaning of section 1 of the Public Service Pensions and Judicial Offices Act 2022 that is pensionable service under this Section of the scheme by virtue of section 2(1) of that Act (remedial service treated as pensionable under Chapter 1 legacy schemes) and whose pensionable pay and pensionable service in this Section of the Scheme is derived from contributions made to the 2015 Scheme in the relevant scheme years in respect of that remediable service, if—

(a)

at any time during that period of service, the terms of the member’s employment contract required the member to work less than whole-time, according to those terms, for any period of time, and

(b)

the member received a relevant payment.

(13)

The member, or if the member is deceased, the member’s personal representatives, may elect for all relevant payments to be included as pensionable pay for the purposes of this regulation, and for service in respect of that pensionable pay to be included in the member’s pensionable service for the purposes of regulations 2.A.3 and 2.A.4.

(14)

The member’s employing authority must before 1 April 2026, or in exceptional circumstances at such later time as the scheme manager decides, send a notice in writing to the member or, as the case may be, the member’s personal representatives, that they may make an election under paragraph (13).

(15)

The notice referred to in paragraph (14) must specify the amount of contributions the member and the member’s employing authority will be required to pay, and the amount of pensionable pay and pensionable service the member will be entitled to in respect of those contributions, if the member or, as the case may be, the member’s personal representatives makes an election under paragraph (13).

(16)

An election under paragraph (13) must be—

(a)

made—

(i)

by the member or, as the case may be, the member’s personal representatives, in writing in such form and including such information as the member’s employing authority requires,

(ii)

in respect of all relevant payments received by the member, and

(b)

received by the member’s employing authority before—

(i)

the end of the period of three months beginning with the day on which the member is provided with the notice under paragraph (14), or

(ii)

such later date before 1 October 2026 as the member’s employing authority considers reasonable in all the circumstances.

(17)

For the purposes of this regulation, a relevant payment means as much of a payment of salary, wages, fees or other regular payment made to a member by the employing authority in respect of any period of time worked by the member in excess of the work required by the terms of their employment contract described in paragraph (12)—

(a)

up to the whole-time equivalent according to the terms of the member’s employment contract during a scheme year falling within the period of the member’s remediable service, and

(b)

that was treated by the member’s employing authority as a payment for overtime for the purposes of regulation 27 of the 2015 Scheme.

(18)

Where a member or, as the case may be, the member’s personal representatives, has made an election under paragraph (13), that member will be treated as if they had made an election under regulation 27A(2) of the 2015 Scheme (election for relevant payments to be included as pensionable earnings).

(19)

If a member or, as the case may be, the member’s personal representatives, does not make an election under paragraph (13), all relevant payments made to that member will be treated as payments for overtime for the purposes of this regulation.”.

Amendment of regulation 2.A.1011.

(1)

Regulation 2.A.10 (pensionable pay: breaks in service) is amended as follows.

(2)

In paragraph (4)(b), for “(e)” substitute “(f)”.

(3)

In paragraph (8)(b), for “(e)” substitute “(f)”.

Amendment of regulation 2.B.112.

In regulation 2.B.1 (eligibility: general)22, in paragraph (3)(a)(i) omit “on or”.

Amendment of regulation 2.E.2213.

In regulation 2.E.22 (payment of lump sums or pensions on death), in paragraph (7), for “regulation 2.J.8(2)” substitute “regulation 2.J.8(4)”.

Amendment of regulation 2.J.914.

(1)

Regulation 2.J.9 (deduction of tax) is amended as follows.

(2)

In paragraph (2)(a), after “benefit crystallisation event” insert “, occurring on or before 6 April 2024,”.

(3)

After paragraph (2) insert—

“(2A)

If a person becomes entitled to a lump sum under this Part which is a relevant benefit crystallisation event, occurring on or after 6 April 2024, then for the purposes of section 637Q or section 637S of the Income Tax (Earnings and Pensions) Act 200323, the Scheme administrator must determine—

(a)

whether any tax is payable in respect of the lump sum in accordance with section 204 of the 2004 Act, and if so,

(b)

the amount of tax payable, and

(c)

the person liable for that tax.”.

Amendment of regulation 3.A.415.

(1)

Regulation 3.A.4 (pensionable service: breaks in service)24 is amended as follows.

(2)

In paragraph (3), for “(e)” substitute “(f)”.

(3)

In paragraph (4), for “(e)” substitute “(f)”.

Amendment of regulation 3.A.516.

(1)

Regulation 3.A.5(1) (meaning of “qualifying service”) is amended as follows.

(2)

Omit sub-paragraph (h).

(3)

After sub-paragraph (i) insert—

“(j)

in the case of a person who—

(i)

ceased to be an active member of the 1995 Section on leaving NHS employment,

(ii)

became a deferred member of that Section on leaving that employment and has not since become a pensioner member of that Section between the date of leaving that employment and joining this Section of the Scheme, and

(iii)

became an active member of this Section of the scheme during the period beginning with 1 October 2008 and ending with 31 March 2015 and five years or more since last leaving NHS employment,

a period equal in length to the period of qualifying service which the member is entitled to count under the 1995 Section,

(k)

in the case of a person who—

(i)

was a deferred member of the 1995 Section who gave notice for the purposes of paragraph (1) or (2)25 of regulation B4 of the 2011 Regulations (opting out of the Scheme),

(ii)

as a result of that notice was treated as ceasing to be an active member of that Section,

(iii)

pursuant to that notice remained opted out of that Section for five years or more, and

(iv)

became an active member of this Section of the Scheme during the period beginning with 1 October 2008 and ending with 31 March 2015,

a period equal in length to the period of qualifying service which the member is entitled to count under the 1995 Section, and

(l)

in the case of a person who—

(i)

was a deferred member of the 1995 Section who gave notice for the purposes of paragraph (1) of regulation B4 of the 2011 Regulations and following that notice, ceased to be an active member of that Section for any one period of five years or more comprising the aggregate of—

(aa)

any period during which the person left NHS employment, and

(bb)

any period during which the person was treated as never having been an active member of that Section in accordance with paragraph (3)26 of regulation B4 of those Regulations in respect of one or more later periods of NHS employment entered into after having given the notice for the purposes of paragraph (1) ) of that regulation, and

(ii)

became an active member of this Section of the Scheme during the period beginning with 1 October 2008 and ending with 31 March 2015,

a period equal in length to the period of qualifying service which the member is entitled to count under the 1995 Section.”.

Amendment of regulation 3.A.817.

In regulation 3.A.8 (pensionable earnings – breaks in service), in paragraph (4)(b), for “(e)” substitute “(f)”.

Amendment of regulation 3.B.118.

In regulation 3.B.1 (eligibility: general)27, in paragraph (3)(a)(i) omit “on or”.

Amendment of regulation 3.E.2219.

In regulation 3.E.22 (payment of lump sums or pensions on death), in paragraph (7), for “regulation 3.J.8(2)” substitute “regulation 3.J.8(4)”.

Amendment of regulation 3.J.920.

(1)

Regulation 3.J.9 (deduction of tax) is amended as follows.

(2)

In paragraph (2)(a), after “the 2004 Act” insert “, occurring on or before 6 April 2024,”.

(3)

After paragraph (2) insert—

“(2A)

If a person becomes entitled to a lump sum under this Part which is a relevant benefit crystallisation event occurring on or after 6 April 2024, then for the purposes of section 637Q or section 637S of the Income Tax (Earnings and Pensions) Act 200328, the Scheme administrator must determine—

(a)

whether any tax is payable in respect of the lump sum in accordance with section 204 of the 2004 Act, and if so,

(b)

the amount of tax payable, and

(c)

the person liable for that tax.”.