If you have paid contributions to the NHS pension scheme in the 12 months before taking up an appointment at Imperial, you may wish to continue in the NHS Pension Scheme (it does not matter whether or not your role at Imperial is clinical). If it is longer than 12 months since you last paid into the scheme, we cannot offer you continued membership, but you can join one of our workplace pension schemes – either SAUL or USS, depending on your grade.
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The NHS Scheme
If you have paid contributions to the NHS pension scheme in the 12 months before taking up an appointment at Imperial, you may, if you wish, elect to continue in the NHS Pension Scheme (it does not matter whether or not your role at Imperial is clinical).
If it is longer than 12 months since you last paid into the scheme, Imperial cannot offer you continued membership, but you can join one of Imperial's workplace pension schemes – either SAUL or USS, depending on your grade.
Important: When completing your new employee starter checklist on your first day, you must indicate if you have paid contributions to the NHS in the last 12 months. If you tick this box, you will be entered into the NHS pension scheme. Leaving this box blank means you will be entered into one of Imperial's schemes instead.
Your contributions (in either scheme) are as follows:
| Pensionable pay range from 1 April 2025 | Contribution rates from 1 April 2024, based on actual annual pensionable pay |
|---|---|
| Up to £13,259 | 5.2% |
| £13,260 to £27,288 | 6.5% |
| £27,289 to £33,247 | 8.3% |
| £33,248 to £49,913 | 9.8% |
| £49,914 to £63,994 | 10.7% |
| £63,995 and above | 12.5% |
You may wish to top up your retirement pension by paying extra or making additional voluntary contributions (AVCs). There are two ways you can do this:
You can buy an Additional Pension (AP). This is a flexible way of increasing your pension and can be done either by a regular monthly payment or a one-off payment. You can use the NHS calculator to see how much pension you could buy and the costs.
Alternatively, you could invest your extra contributions into a fund that is then used to top up your pension in retirement. These are called Money Purchase AVCs (MPAVCs). The NHS use two providers of MPAVC funds, Standard Life & Prudential, and more information on these can be found on their website. These contributions are deducted from your monthly salary and your normal contributions and would then be invested on your behalf with one of these providers.
For members of the 2015 scheme with a State Pension Age of greater than 65 (which you can check on the Government website), you may also elect to pay a contribution for Early Retirement Reduction Buy Out (ERRBO). This allows you to pay a contribution to buy out the reduction in your pension by one, two or three years to a minimum retirement age of 65. Further information can be found in the ERRBO Factsheet.
Pension contributions qualify for tax relief. The relief is given at source through the payroll for your normal contributions and any AVCs you might pay. There are limits to the amount you can save into your pension and still receive tax relief, so you may wish to read our web page before deciding to pay extra into your pension.