{
  "url": "https://openlegislation.uk/national-health-service-pension-scheme-regulations-2015/regulation-22",
  "json_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/national-health-service-pension-scheme-regulations-2015/regulation-22.json",
  "legislation": "uksi/2015/94",
  "legislation_title": "The National Health Service Pension Scheme Regulations 2015",
  "legislation_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/national-health-service-pension-scheme-regulations-2015",
  "path": "regulation/22",
  "kind": "regulation",
  "number": "22",
  "heading": "Qualifying service",
  "text": "(1) The qualifying service of a member (M) is the aggregate of the following periods—\n(a) M's pensionable service, except service mentioned in regulation 20(1)(c);\n(b) a transfer in period;\n(c) a transferred undertaking period;\n(d) a period treated as qualifying service by virtue of paragraph (6);\n(e) a period of relevant qualifying service in a connected scheme; and\n(f) a period of service in respect of which M is a pensioner member in this scheme.\n(2) In determining a period of pensionable service for the purposes of paragraph (1)(a), paragraph (b) of regulation 20(2) must be ignored.\n(3) A transfer in period is the period equal to M's period as an active member in another occupational pension scheme (including a connected scheme) in relation to which a transfer value in respect of M's rights under the scheme has been accepted under Part 7.\n(4) A transferred undertaking period is the period of employment that qualified M for rights under another occupational pension scheme where—\n(a) M became an active member of this scheme on the transfer of M's employment to a new employer as the result of a transfer of undertaking to that employer; and\n(b) no transfer payment in respect of those rights has been accepted under Part 7.\n(5) Paragraph (6) applies if M is employed on a casual basis or is a locum practitioner and, for a period not exceeding 3 months—\n(a) M ceases to pay contributions because of a break not exceeding that period in the employment in which M is an active member, but before the end of the period M re-enters the employment on the same basis as before the break; or\n(b) M is not engaged as such a practitioner and so is not treated as being in pensionable service, but before the end of the period M is re-engaged as such a practitioner.\n(6) The period mentioned in paragraph (5) is treated as a period when M continues to be in qualifying service and—\n(a) M is not required to re-join the scheme on re-entering the employment or on being re-engaged; and\n(b) if M is engaged as a locum practitioner, the period does not count as pensionable service as a practitioner.\n(7) Relevant qualifying service in a connected scheme is service that counts for the purposes of—\n(a) regulation C3 of the 1995 Regulations; or\n(b) regulations 2.A.5 or 3.A.5 of the 2008 Regulations.",
  "extent": null,
  "status": null,
  "version": "current",
  "annotations": [
    {
      "type": "C",
      "label": "C1",
      "text": "Reg. 22(5)(6) applied (1.4.2015) by The National Health Service Pension Scheme (Transitional and Consequential Provisions) Regulations 2015 (S.I. 2015/95), regs. 1(b), 9"
    }
  ],
  "outstanding_effects": [],
  "provenance": {
    "source": "legislation.gov.uk",
    "source_url": "https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2015/94/regulation/22",
    "retrieved_at": "2026-10-28T23:49:26.680467+00:00"
  },
  "licence": "Open Government Licence v3.0",
  "licence_url": "https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/",
  "attribution": "Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives."
}