The Public Service (Civil Servants and Others) Pensions Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2014

Made: 26th November 2014

Coming into operation in accordance with regulation 1(2) and (3)

In accordance with section 21 of that Act, the Department of Finance and Personnel has consulted such persons and representatives of such persons as appear to the Department likely to be affected by these Regulations.

PART 1 — Preliminary

Citation and commencement

1

• (1) These Regulations may be cited as the Public Service (Civil Servants and Others) Pensions Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2014.

• (2) Part 1, regulations 138 and 182, Schedule 1 (payments for extra pension) and Schedule 2 (transitional provisions) shall come into operation on 18th December 2014.

• (3) The remaining provisions come into operation on 1st April 2015.

Interpretation

2

In these Regulations—

• “the Act” means the Public Service Pensions Act (Northern Ireland) 2014;

• “the 1971 Act” means the Pensions (Increase) Act (Northern Ireland) 1971[^f00005];

• “the 1972 Order” means the Superannuation (Northern Ireland) Order 1972[^f00006];

• “the 1993 Act” means the Pension Schemes (Northern Ireland) Act 1993[^f00007];

• “the 1995 Order” means the Pensions (Northern Ireland) Order 1995[^f00008];

• “the 1999 Order” means the Welfare Reform and Pensions (Northern Ireland) Order 1999[^f00009];

• “the 2004 Act” means the Finance Act 2004[^f00010];

• “accrued added pension” means—accrued added (self only) pension (if any); andaccrued added (all beneficiaries) pension (if any);

• “accrued club transfer earned pension”—for the purpose of calculating the amount of a description of full retirement pension or the provisional amount of a description of deferred pension, is the amount calculated in accordance with regulation 35(5);for the purpose of calculating the amount of a description of partial retirement pension, is the amount calculated in accordance with regulation 36(5);

• “accrued earned pension” means—in relation to this scheme—accrued standard earned pension (if any);accrued earned pension attributable to an effective pension age option (if any);accrued club transfer earned pension (if any);in relation to another pension scheme, accrued rights to benefits under that scheme which are the equivalent of accrued earned pension under this scheme;

• “accrued pension” means—accrued earned pension under this scheme; andaccrued added pension (if any);

• “accrued rights”, in relation to benefits under this scheme, does not include a right to benefits attributable (directly or indirectly) to a pension credit;

• “accrued standard earned pension”—for the purpose of calculating the amount of a description of full retirement pension or the provisional amount of any description of deferred pension, is the amount calculated in accordance with regulation 35(3);for the purpose of calculating the amount of a description of partial retirement pension, is the amount calculated in accordance with regulation 36(3);

• “active member” has the meaning given in regulation 2A;

• “active member’s account” has the meaning given in regulation 40(2);

• “actuarial guidance” means guidance given by the scheme manager after consultation with the scheme actuary;

• “actuarial reduction”, in relation to reduction of pension payable to a member who has not reached normal pension age, means a reduction determined by the scheme manager after consulting with the scheme actuary or taking into account tables prepared by the scheme actuary;

• “actuarial tables” means tables determined by the scheme manager after consultation with the scheme actuary;

• “added pension” means, in relation to this scheme—added (self only) pension (if any); andadded (all beneficiaries) pension (if any);

• “added pension payments” means periodical payments or a lump sum payment for added pension made to this scheme;

• “additional adoption leave” means additional ordinary adoption leave under Article 107B of The Employment Rights (Northern Ireland) Order 1996;

• “additional maternity leave” has the meaning given in regulation 2(1) of the Maternity and Parental Leave etc. Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1999;

• ...[^f00012]

• “Admission Agreement” has the meaning given in regulation 16;

• “adoption leave” means ordinary adoption leave or additional adoption leave;

• “age addition” has the meaning given in regulation 33(4);

• “the allocation amount” means the amount of the pension allocated as a result of making an allocation election;

• “allocation election” means an election under regulation 86;

• “amount of added pension”, in relation to a scheme year, means an amount calculated in accordance with regulation 43(7);

• “amount of credited pension” has the meaning given in regulation 56(5);

• “amount of earned pension”, in relation to a scheme year, means an amount calculated in accordance with regulation 43(4);

• “annual allowance” has the meaning given in section 228 (annual allowance) of the 2004 Act[^f00014];

• “annual allowance charge” has the meaning given in section 227 (annual allowance charge) of the 2004 Act[^f00015];

• “annual rate”—for each description of pension, has the meaning given in Part 6 (retirement benefits); andin relation to pensionable earnings, means the amount of pensionable earnings payable for a scheme year;

• “assumed age addition” has the meaning given in regulation 34(3);

• “assumed pay” has the meaning given in regulation 27(2);

• “the beginning date”, in relation to a pension not attributable (directly or indirectly) to a pension credit, means the date on which the pension is deemed to begin for the purpose of section 8(2) (meaning of “pension” and other supplementary provisions) of the 1971 Act[^f00016];

• “beneficiary”, in relation to a deceased member, means the surviving adult or eligible child of the member;

• “child-related leave” means adoption leave, maternity leave, parental leave, paternity leave or shared parental leave;

• “civil service” means the civil service of Northern Ireland;

• “closing date”, in relation to a transition member, has the meaning given in paragraph 1 of Schedule 2 (transitional provisions);

• “club scheme” means a registered occupational pension scheme (other than a connected scheme) that has agreed to make and receive club transfer value payments under the club transfer arrangements;

• “club transfer” means a transfer to or from this scheme under the club transfer arrangements;

• “club transfer arrangements” means arrangements approved by the scheme manager as providing reciprocal arrangements between this scheme and other registered occupational pension schemes for making and receiving club transfer value payments;

• “club transfer earned pension” means pension attributable to the receipt of a club transfer value payment;

• “club transfer value” has the meaning given in regulation 141

• “club transfer value payment” means payment of a club transfer value;

• “the commutation amount” means the amount of pension exchanged for a lump sum as a result of the exercise of the commutation option;

• “commutation option” means the option to exchange part of a pension for a lump sum—exercisable under regulation 84 in relation to a retirement pension ;orexercisable under regulation 97 in relation to a pension credit member’s pension;

• “compensation scheme” means—the Civil Service Compensation Scheme (Northern Ireland) made under Article 3 (superannuation schemes as respects civil servants etc.) of the 1972 Order[^f00017] which was made on the 28th August 1996, as amended from time to time;a scheme made under section 1(2)(a) of the Act providing for redundancy compensation payments;

• “connected scheme” has the meaning given in regulation 2B;

• “continuity of service”, in relation to a transition member, has the meaning given in paragraph 2 of Schedule 2;

• “continuous period of pensionable service”, in relation to this scheme, means a period of pensionable service under this scheme disregarding any gap in pensionable service not exceeding 5 years, unless otherwise provided;

• “death benefits” means benefits payable under Part 8 (death benefits);

• “deferred member”, in relation to this scheme, has the meaning given in regulation 28;

• “deferred member’s account” has the meaning given in regulation 47(3);

• “description of accrued added pension” means any of the following—accrued added (self only) pension; oraccrued added (all beneficiaries) pension;

• “description of accrued pension” means accrued pension of a description mentioned in regulation 29;

• “description of added pension” means any of the following—added (self only) pension; ...added (all beneficiaries) pension;

• “description of deferred pension” means any of the following—deferred standard earned pension;deferred earned pension attributable to an effective pension age option;deferred club transfer earned pension;deferred added (all beneficiaries) pension;deferred added (self only) pension;

• “description of full retirement pension” means a full retirement pension of a description mentioned in regulation 30;

• “description of partial retirement pension” means a partial retirement pension of a description mentioned in regulation 31;

• “description of pension” means any of the following—standard earned pension;transferred pension;earned pension attributable to an effective pension age option;club transfer earned pension;added (all beneficiaries) pension;added (self only) pension;

• “the Department” means the Department of Finance and Personnel;

• “dual capacity member” has the meaning given in regulation 160;

• “early payment reduction” means the actuarial reduction that is applied when calculating the annual rate of pension payable to a member of this scheme who has not reached normal pension age under this scheme or, if applicable, effective pension age;

• “effective pension age”, in relation to a member who has exercised an effective pension age option, means the age at which the member is entitled to payment, without actuarial reduction, of a full retirement earned pension or partial retirement earned pension attributable to that option;

• “effective pension age payments” has the meaning given in paragraph 1 of Schedule 1 (payments for extra pension);

• “effective pension age option” has the meaning given in paragraph 1 of Schedule 1;

• “eligible child” has the meaning given in regulation 113;

• “eligible child’s pension” has the meaning given in regulation 112;

• “employment” includes an office or appointment and related expressions are to be read accordingly;

• “Fair Deal eligible person” has the meaning given in regulation 16;

• “Fair Deal transfer date” has the meaning given in regulation 16;

• “full retirement account” has the meaning given in regulation 51(4);

• “full retirement added pension” means, unless otherwise provided—full retirement added (self only) pension (if any); andfull retirement added (all beneficiaries) pension (if any);

• “full retirement earned pension” means, unless otherwise provided—full retirement standard earned pension (if any);full retirement earned pension attributable to an effective pension age option (if any);full retirement club transfer earned pension (if any);

• “full retirement pension” means—full retirement earned pension; andfull retirement added pension (if any);

• “guaranteed minimum” means the guaranteed minimum as defined in sections 10[^f00018] (earner’s guaranteed minimum) and 13[^f00019] (minimum pensions for widows and widowers) of the 1993 Act—as increased in accordance with the requirements of section 105[^f00020] of that Act (annual increase of guaranteed minimum pensions); andif a reduction has been made under section 11A[^f00021] of that Act (reduction of guaranteed minimum in consequence of pension debit), as reduced in accordance with that section;

• “ill-health pension”, in relation to pension payable under this scheme, means—a lower tier earned pension; andan upper tier top up earned pension (if applicable); orif paragraph 29 of Schedule 2 applies, a pension payable under that paragraph;

• “index adjustment” means—in relation to the opening balance of a description of pension other than club transfer earned pension for any scheme year, the change in prices in the previous scheme year [^f00022];andin relation to the opening balance of club transfer earned pension for any scheme year, the in-service revaluation index that the sending scheme would have applied to the transferred pension for the previous scheme year , had it not been transferred.

• “in-service revaluation index”, in relation to a pension scheme, means the percentage increase or decrease by which the pensionable earnings of a person, or a proportion of those earnings accrued as a pension, are revalued whilst the person is in pensionable service in that pension scheme;

• “last active scheme year” means the scheme year in which an active member of this scheme ceases to be in pensionable service under this scheme;

• “last day of pensionable service”, means the last day of a continuous period of pensionable service under this scheme;

• “late payment supplement”, in relation to the provisional amount of any description of deferred pension, means an additional amount of pension determined by the scheme manager after consulting the scheme actuary to be appropriate if a deferred member of this scheme is over normal pension age under this scheme or, if applicable, effective pension age, before becoming entitled to the immediate payment of a full retirement pension;

• “the leaving year” means the scheme year in which the relevant last day falls;

• “lower tier earned pension” means accrued earned pension payable if a member meets the lower tier payment threshold;

• “lower tier payment threshold” has the meaning given in regulation 72;

• “lump sum death benefit” means a lump sum paid under Part 8 (death benefits) on the death of a member;

• “maternity leave” means ordinary maternity leave or additional maternity leave ...[^f00023];

• “member”, in relation to this scheme, means an active member, deferred member, pensioner member or pension credit member of this scheme;

• “member contributions” has the meaning given in regulation 134;

• “normal minimum pension age” has the same meaning as in section 279(1) (other definitions) of the 2004 Act[^f00024].

• “normal pension age”, in relation to this scheme, is determined in accordance with section 10 of the Act;

• “occupational pension scheme” has the meaning given in section 1 (categories of pension schemes) of the 1993 Act[^f00025];

• “opening balance”, in relation to a description of pension for a scheme year, has the meaning given in regulation 44;

• “option proportion”, in relation to a description of accrued pension, means the proportion specified in a notice under regulation 65;

• “ordinary adoption leave” means ordinary adoption leave under Article 107A of The Employment Rights (Northern Ireland) Order 1996[^f00005];

• “ordinary maternity leave” has the meaning given in regulation 2(1) of the Maternity and Parental Leave etc. Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1999;

• “parental leave” has the meaning given in regulation 2(1) of the Maternity and Parental Leave etc. Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1999;

• “partial retirement account” has the meaning given in regulation 54;

• “partial retirement added pension” means—partial retirement added (self only) pension (if any); andpartial retirement added (all beneficiaries) pension (if any);

• “partial retirement earned pension” means—partial retirement standard earned pension (if any);partial retirement earned pension attributable to an effective pension age option (if any); and partial retirement club transfer earned pension (if any);

• “partial retirement option” means the option exercisable under regulation 64;

• “partial retirement pension” means—partial retirement earned pension; andpartial retirement added pension (if any);

• “partially retired”, in relation to a member of this scheme, means a member who has exercised the partial retirement option;

• “partnership pension account” has the meaning given in regulation 2C;

• “paternity leave” means leave under regulation 4 or 8 of the Paternity and Adoption Leave Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2002[^f00026];

• “pay period” means the period in respect of which a payment of pensionable earnings is made;

• “PCSPS(NI) partial retirement option” means the option exercisable under rule—D.1A of Section I of the PCSPS(NI);3.3b of Section II of the PCSPS(NI); orE.4 of Section III of the PCSPS(NI);

• “pension credit” has the meaning given under Article 121(1) of the 1995 Order[^f00027];

• “pension credit member”, in relation to this scheme, means a person who has rights under this scheme which are attributable (directly or indirectly) to a pension credit under a pension sharing order following divorce or nullity of marriage;

• “pension credit member’s account” has the meaning given in regulation 56;

• “pension credit member’s pension” means a pension payable under regulation 91;

• “pension debit member” in relation to this scheme, means a person who is a member of this scheme whose benefits or future benefits under this scheme have been reduced under Article 28 (reduction of benefit) of the 1999 Order;

• “pensionable earnings” has the meaning given in regulation 26;

• “pensionable public service” means pensionable service under an existing scheme[^f00028] or an existing public body pension scheme as defined in paragraph 1 of Schedule 2 (transitional provisions);

• “pensionable service”, in relation to a pension scheme, means service which qualifies a person to a pension or other benefits under that scheme;

• “pensioner member” in relation to this scheme, means a person who is entitled to the immediate payment of a retirement pension under this scheme;