24 Hour Retirement
24 hour retirement
Please note, ordinarily 24 hour retirement requires pension scheme members to come back to work for no more than 16 hours per week, for the first calendar month following 24 hour retirement.
COVID-19 Update please note this ceases 24th March 2022.
During Covid-19, this rule has been temporarily suspended. This suspension allows members to return immediately to work after taking a minimum 24-hour retirement and continue their existing working commitments, or increase them, whilst they are in receipt of their full pension benefits.
The emergency coronavirus legislation has relaxed the 16-hour rule for 24-hour retirement: the rule restricted those in the 1995 NHS Pension Scheme to working a maximum of 16 hours per week during the month following 24-hour retirement. There is now no restriction.
Members of the 2008 and 2015 pension schemes who had elected to draw down a proportion of their benefits and continue working previously had to reduce their pensionable pay by 10 per cent. This requirement has also been suspended.
Once the COVID-19 pandemic ends, a six-month notice period will be given before the suspension is lifted to allow a readjustment to working patterns if necessary.
For more detailed information, visit the NHSBSA website. NHSBSA Taking your pension link
All Performer list processes, including 24 hour retirement, are now accessed through PCSE Online.
All GPs have been automatically registered. You've been sent a verification email, from pcse.csc-noreply@nhs.net, to set up your password. Please check your junk/spam folder. The verification email may have expired - simply click the link to generate another verification email. Click here if you need support to complete the registration process.
You can apply for 24 hour retirement by logging in to PCSE Online, navigating to the Performer List home page, and choosing "Withdrawal from Performers List" from the left hand menu.
You will need to provide at least three months' notice of your 24 hour retirement.
You will also need to upload a completed AW8 form. This can be found, along with useful guidance, on the NHSBSA website.
PCSE Online has been designed to be user-friendly. However, if you need additional support, download our Performer Management guide here, and you'll find step by step instructions on pages 20-22.