There are several options available to you if you leave the LGPS.
If you have less than two years’ total membership and haven’t transferred anything into the LGPS from elsewhere:
- You can get a refund - the amount needed to buy you back into the state second pension scheme (S2P) and any tax due will be taken off the refund you get.
- You can transfer the cash equivalent of your benefits into another pension - your new employer’s scheme, a personal pension plan, a stakeholder pension scheme, or a ‘buy-out’ insurance policy.
- You can wait until you re-join local government, and link the service.
If you’ve got more than two years’ total membership or have transferred a previous pension into the LGPS:
- You can leave your benefits in the scheme, and when you retire you’ll get a pension based on your total membership (and final pay revalued for inflation) on the day you left the scheme.
- You can transfer the cash equivalent of your benefits into another pension - your new employer’s scheme, a personal pension plan, a stakeholder pension scheme, or a ‘buy-out’ insurance policy.
Financial advice
If you transfer your pension to another scheme it may not have the guarantees the LGPS offers, so think carefully about making this decision and consider taking financial advice.
More information
A Guide to the Local Government Pension Scheme has full details of the LGPS. If you would rather receive a copy by post, contact us.