Police Pension Calculator 2026

Service between 1 April 2015 and 31 March 2022 is subject to the Deferred Choice Underpin (DCU). This means you will choose between legacy (1987/2006) or reformed (2015) benefits for that period at the time you retire.

This calculator uses standard 2015 scheme rules for all service since April 2015, and its McCloud comparison treats up to 7 of those years as the remedy period. Your administrator's remedy statement uses your exact dates. Planning a remedy decision? Understand both the legacy and 2015 scheme outcomes before choosing.

For the McCloud remedy (the deferred choice underpin), the calculator works out your 2015 to 2022 remedy-period years under both your legacy scheme and the 2015 scheme, and shows the difference a year from your own service and pay.

Following the McCloud judgment, the Home Office acknowledged that many officers opted out of the police pension scheme due to the uncertainty and legacy discrimination surrounding the 2015 CARE transition. Under the Contingent Decisions framework (often called CD-RSS), eligible officers can apply for retrospective reinstatement.

Post-2026 processing and appeals

While the primary March 2026 window for Contingent Decisions has closed, late appeals are still possible if you were not adequately notified. Additionally, for officers who submitted claims prior to the deadline, forces are currently working through significant backlogs. It is worth understanding what you are owed now so you can check the administrator's statement when it arrives.

Why this matters

Buying back this “lost” service reinstates your legacy rights for the remedy period. You will have to pay the owed pension contributions (with tax relief and interest to take into account), and for many officers the final salary link in the 1987 or 2006 scheme is worth more than the buy-back cost. Your administrator's figures show whether that is true for you.

During a police pension divorce, the pension is often the largest single financial asset, frequently exceeding the value of the marital home. Courts typically resolve this by issuing a Pension Sharing Order (PSO), which mandates a strict percentage split of the officer's pension rights.

What is a Cash Equivalent Value (CEV)?

Before a pension can be split, the administrator must calculate its Cash Equivalent Value (CEV). This actuarial figure represents the total capitalized value of your future pension benefits in today's money. If a court orders a 50% split, exactly half of your CEV is transferred out of your police pension and into a separate, independent scheme for your ex-spouse (known as a pension credit).

The true cost of a pension split

A Pension Sharing Order does not just reduce your final retirement payout; it creates a massive “debit” against your record. Many officers mistakenly believe they can simply work a few extra years to cover a 50% split. In reality, because of the geometric weighting of legacy schemes, replacing a 50% CEV loss often requires 7 to 9 years of additional full-time service.

How to use this tool for divorce planning

To see the effect on your figures, open the Pension sharing tab in the calculator and select “Yes” for a pension sharing order. Enter your official CEV value (from your pension administrator) and the split % in the order. This input is part of the full breakdown: it shows a rough estimate of how the pension debit reduces your pension. It does not replace the administrator's own debit calculation.

With the abolition of the Lifetime Allowance (LTA) and the introduction of the new Lump Sum Allowance (LSA) and Lump Sum and Death Benefit Allowance (LSDBA), the retirement landscape for police officers has shifted.

A Chief Inspector or Superintendent nearing retirement now faces significant “Annual Allowance” traps due to the way pension growth is calculated during a promotion year. The calculator gives a rough estimate of your annual allowance pension input using HMRC’s method, and the full breakdown splits it between your legacy and 2015 schemes and shows what a promotion adds. It is an estimate, not a pension savings statement: see how the annual allowance works for police pensions.

The statutory formulas and logic used across the three national police pension schemes.

Typical retirement

Age 50 to 60

Depends on scheme and total years served.

Accrual basis

CARE vs final salary

Post-2015 uses Career Average (CARE).

Pensionable pay

Base salary

Overtime is almost always excluded.

The calculator works out each part of your pension under its own scheme rules: the 1987 scheme's final salary rules (including the faster accrual after 20 years), the 2006 scheme's final salary rules, and the 2015 scheme's career average (CARE) rules, then adds them together.

Inflation modelling (CPI)

The 2015 scheme revalues each year's pension by CPI + 1.25% while you serve. The calculator uses the inflation and pay rise figures in the calculator (2% and 2.5% a year unless you change them) and shows results in today's money.

Sources

The estimates use the published rules for the 1987, 2006 and 2015 police pension schemes, the Government Actuary's Department commutation factors and the McCloud remedy rules. They are estimates, not a forecast: your force's pension administrator issues your official figures.

Before you act

Pension rules and factors change, so check your administrator's figures before you act. For regulated financial advice, always consult a specialist police IFA.