Regulation 2.A.5 Meaning of “qualifying service”C1
England and Wales
In this Part, references to a member’s qualifying service, are references to the aggregate of the following periods—
the member’s pensionable service under this Part other than such pensionable service as is referred to in regulation 2.A.2(1)(c) (transferred-in service),
in the case of a person in respect of whom a transfer value in respect of his rights under another pension arrangement F1(including the F21995 Section) has been accepted under Chapter 2.F (transfers), a period equal to the person’s period as an active member in any occupational pension scheme in respect of which the rights accrued,
in the case of a person who—
became an active member on the transfer of the person’s employment to a new employer as the result of a transfer of an undertaking to that employer, and
has rights under another occupational pension scheme to which the person was eligible to belong in the person’s employment with the former employer, in respect of which no transfer payment has been accepted under regulation 2.F.10,
the period of employment that qualified the member for those rights,
any period treated as qualifying service under paragraph (3), (5) or (6) or under regulation 2.A.6, F3...
where the member ceased to be an active member under Part 3 not more than 12 months before becoming a member under this Part, any period of qualifying service under Part 3.
in the case of a person—
who is eligible to join F5this Section of the Scheme by virtue of regulation 2.B.1(5)(c), and
for whom the interval between leaving the 1995 Section and joining this Section of the Scheme is less than one month,
a period equal to the period of qualifying service (within the meaning of the 1995 Regulations), measured in years and days, that the member was entitled to count under regulation C3 of the 1995 Regulations when the member left that scheme F6; F7...
in the case of a 2008 Section Optant, any period of qualifying service the member is entitled to count under Chapter 2.K.
in the case of a Waiting Period Joiner referred to in regulation 2.L.1, a period equal in length to the period of qualifying service which the member is entitled to count under the 1995 Section; F9...
in the case of a person who—
ceased to be an active member of the 1995 Section on leaving NHS employment,
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
became an active member of this Section of the Scheme during the period beginning with 1st October 2008 and ending with 31st 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,
in the case of a person who—
was a deferred member of the 1995 Section who gave notice for the purposes of paragraph (1) or (1A) of regulation B4 of the 1995 Regulations (opting out of this Section of the Scheme),
as a result of that notice was treated as ceasing to be an active member of that Section,
pursuant to that notice remains opted-out of that Section for five years or more, and
became an active member of this Section of the Scheme during the period beginning with 1st 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
in the case of a person who—
was a deferred member of the 1995 Section who gave notice for the purposes of paragraph (1) or (1A) of regulation B4 of the 1995 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—
any period during which the person left NHS employment, and
any period during which the person was treated as never having been an active member of that Section in accordance with paragraph (3) 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 (1A) of that regulation, and
became an active member of this Section of the Scheme during the period beginning with 1st October 2008 and ending with 31st March 2015,
a period equal in length to the period of qualifying service which the member is entitled to count under the 1995 Section.
Paragraph (3) applies if a member who is employed on a casual basis—
ceases to pay contributions because of a break in the employment in which the member is an active member of a period not exceeding three months, and
re-enters employment in which the member is eligible to be an active member on the same basis after the break.
For the purposes of this Part the member is treated—
as continuing to be in qualifying service during the break, and
as not being required to rejoin this Section of the scheme on re-entering the employment.
For the other rules applying where there is a short break in service, see regulation 2.A.6.
If—
a pension becomes payable to a member under regulation 2.D.11 (early retirement on termination of employment by employing authority) in a case where regulation 2.D.13(5) applies, and
the member has elected to take benefits under regulation 2.D.11 only in respect of the old employment and to continue to accrue rights to benefits in respect of any continuing employments in which the member is an active member,
the pensionable service in respect of which that pension is calculated is treated as qualifying service in relation to any employment in respect of which rights to benefits continue to accrue.
In determining the service that is pensionable service for the purposes of this regulation, regulation 2.A.3 (meaning of “pensionable service”: part-time service) does not apply, but for those purposes part-time employments held concurrently are treated as a single employment.
Annotations
Textual amendments
- F1
Words in reg. 2.A.5(1)(b) inserted (1.10.2008) by The National Health Service Pension Scheme and Injury Benefits (Amendment) Regulations 2008 (S.I. 2008/2263), regs. 1(2)(3), 28(a) (with reg. 93)
- F2
Words in reg. 2.A.5 substituted (1.10.2009) by The National Health Service Pension Scheme, Injury Benefits and Additional Voluntary Contributions (Amendment) Regulations 2009 (S.I. 2009/2446), reg. 1(2), Sch. 2 para. 2
- F3
Word in reg. 2.A.5(1)(d) omitted (1.10.2009) by virtue of The National Health Service Pension Scheme, Injury Benefits and Additional Voluntary Contributions (Amendment) Regulations 2009 (S.I. 2009/2446), regs. 1(2), 15(a)
- F4
Reg. 2.A.5(1)(f) inserted (with effect from 1.4.2008) by The National Health Service Pension Scheme and Injury Benefits (Amendment) Regulations 2008 (S.I. 2008/2263), regs. 1(2)(6), 28(b) (with reg. 93)
- F5
Words in reg. 2.A.5 inserted (1.10.2009) by The National Health Service Pension Scheme, Injury Benefits and Additional Voluntary Contributions (Amendment) Regulations 2009 (S.I. 2009/2446), reg. 1(2), Sch. 2 para. 1
- F6
Reg. 2.A.5(1)(g) and word inserted (1.10.2009) by The National Health Service Pension Scheme, Injury Benefits and Additional Voluntary Contributions (Amendment) Regulations 2009 (S.I. 2009/2446), regs. 1(2), 15(b)
- F7
Word in reg. 2.A.5(1)(f) omitted (with effect from 9.2.2011) by virtue of The National Health Service Pension Scheme, Injury Benefits and Additional Voluntary Contributions (Amendment) Regulations 2011 (S.I. 2011/2586), regs. 1(2)(4), 15(a)
- F8
Reg. 2.A.5(1)(h)(i) added (with effect from 9.2.2011) by The National Health Service Pension Scheme, Injury Benefits and Additional Voluntary Contributions (Amendment) Regulations 2011 (S.I. 2011/2586), regs. 1(2)(4), 15(b)
- F9
Word in reg. 2.A.5(1)(h) omitted (with effect from 1.4.2015) by virtue of The National Health Service Pension Schemes (Amendment) Regulations 2025 (S.I. 2025/316), regs. 1(2)(5), 9(2)
- F10
Reg. 2.A.5(1)(i) substituted (with effect from 1.4.2015) by The National Health Service Pension Schemes (Amendment) Regulations 2025 (S.I. 2025/316), regs. 1(2)(5), 9(3)
- F11
Reg. 2.A.5(1)(j)(k) inserted (with effect from 1.4.2015) by The National Health Service Pension Schemes (Amendment) Regulations 2025 (S.I. 2025/316), regs. 1(2)(5), 9(4)