Police
Retirement
What happens once your police pension starts: who pays it and when, how it is taxed and increased, the lump sum, working again, what your family receives, and how it fits with the State Pension. Scheme by scheme, from the regulations, with the gaps marked.
Independent information, not advice · Sources checked 1 October 2026 · England and Wales unless stated
Your former force, through its pension administrator, pays the pension monthly for life, with tax deducted through PAYE. Any lump sum is paid around retirement and is tax-free within the rules. The pension rises each April with CPI (from 55, unless you retired on ill-health grounds), and survivors' pensions can follow. Rules differ between the 1987, 2006 and 2015 schemes, so check each part.
What changes on the day your pension starts
Retiring from the police is a change of employer as much as a change of life. Your pay comes from force payroll until your last day; after that, your money comes from the police pension scheme. That has practical effects people do not always expect, so it helps to know who is now responsible for what.
This hub covers retirement from service with an immediate pension. If you are leaving before you can draw a pension, read resigning from the police instead. If you are leaving because of illness or injury, start with ill-health retirement and the injury hub: the selected medical practitioner process is different and is not covered here.
Police retirement age: is there one, and when can you go?
Two questions hide inside "what is the police retirement age". One is whether you have to retire at a certain age. The other is when you can leave with a pension that is paid straight away.
Do you have to retire? The 1987 scheme (reg A18) and the 2006 scheme (reg 19) set compulsory retirement ages, from 1 October 2006 60 for constables to chief inspectors and 65 for higher ranks. The Police Federation's national circular of 14 June 2022 explains that the 2015 scheme, made under the Public Service Pensions Act 2013, contains no power to retire an officer compulsorily on age, that since 1 April 2022 all serving officers build pension in the 2015 scheme, and that forces should therefore no longer apply compulsory retirement ages. It records that the NPCC issued an advice note agreeing, and that the Federation had asked the Home Office to confirm the legal position. We found no later Home Office statement either way.
When can you draw your pension? That depends on each scheme you have service in, which for most officers retiring now means a legacy part and a 2015 part.
- 1987 scheme: an ordinary pension with 25 years' pensionable service, paid from age 50, or with 30 years' service at any age (reg B1). Service in the 2015 scheme counts towards the 25 and 30 years if it is continuous (2015 Regulations, Sch 4 para 37). Retiring at the age limit for your rank (55 for constables and sergeants, 60 for inspectors and above outside the Met) also gives an immediate pension whatever your service (regs A18, B1(3)(c) and B2). You must give the required notice, unless the authority decides otherwise (reg B1(2)).
- 2006 scheme: an immediate pension on voluntary retirement from age 55 (regs 18 and 27).
- 2015 scheme: normal pension age 60 (Public Service Pensions Act 2013 s.10), with the option to take it from 55 with a reduction for early payment (regs 50 and 90).
The Federation's circular adds that the absence of a compulsory age does not change when pensions can be accessed. For the timing decision itself, including what the 2015 reduction costs at 55 and how McCloud remedy service fits in, see can I retire at 55? and should I retire before further pension changes?
The police pension calculator estimates legacy and 2015 scheme pension at different retirement ages, so you can see what waiting a year changes before you ask your administrator for a formal estimate. Its core figures are free.
The retirement timeline, from a year out to your survivors
The order of events is broadly the same in every force, even though forms and timescales differ. This table is the map; each row links to the guide that covers it in depth.
| When | What happens | Rule or source | Guide |
|---|---|---|---|
| About 12 months before | Ask your pension administrator for an estimate at your intended date, and a Remediable Service Statement if you served between 1 April 2015 and 31 March 2022. Get a State Pension forecast. | Administrator; McCloud remedy; GOV.UK State Pension forecast | Retirement checklist |
| At least one month before | Give written notice of your intention to retire (three months for chief officer ranks). In the 1987 scheme, retiring without the notice can affect entitlement to the ordinary pension unless the authority agrees. | Police Regulations 2003 reg 14 and the Home Office determination (Annex D); 1987 reg B1(2) | Notice rules |
| Before the first payment | Decide whether to exchange (commute) part of the pension for a tax-free lump sum. In the 2015 scheme the option can only be exercised before the first payment of the pension. | 2015 reg 124(2); 1987 members' guide section 7.1 (notice before retirement) | Tax-free cash |
| Your last day of service | Pay stops. For pensions increase purposes your pension is treated as beginning the next day, whenever it is actually paid. | Pensions (Increase) Act 1971 s.8(2) | First year |
| First weeks | Lump sum and first pension payment; your force payroll issues a P45 and the pension payer operates PAYE on the pension. | Scheme payment rules; HMRC PAYE | First year, tax |
| First April after you retire | Annual pensions increase, pro-rated by complete months in payment if your pension started in the previous 12 months, and only if you are 55 or over or retired on ill-health grounds. | Pensions Increase (Review) Order 2026 art 3; Pensions (Increase) Act 1971 s.3 | Pension increase 2027 |
| Age 55 (if you retired younger) | Annual increases can start to be paid. Ask your administrator how your rate will be recalculated. | Pensions (Increase) Act 1971 s.3(2)(a) | Pension increase 2027 |
| Your State Pension age | State Pension can be claimed (it is not paid automatically). It is taxable and is usually collected through the tax code on your police pension. | GOV.UK State Pension age checker | State Pension gap |
| If you work again | Re-employment can affect some pensions in some circumstances. Tell your administrator before you start. | Scheme abatement and re-employment rules | Working after retirement |
| On your death | Survivors' and children's pensions may become payable; the family must tell the administrator. | Scheme survivor rules | Survivor benefits |
Two points in that timeline cannot easily be undone. The commutation choice is made once, before the pension is first paid, and in the 2015 scheme the regulations say so expressly (reg 124(2)). And the McCloud remedy choice for service between April 2015 and March 2022 is made at retirement for most members still serving, using the Remediable Service Statement. Both are covered on the McCloud remedy and tax-free cash pages. Where sums are large, a regulated financial adviser can look at your whole position; we do not recommend one.
Your pension in payment, scheme by scheme
Most officers retiring now have pension in more than one scheme: a legacy part (1987 or 2006) and a 2015 part. Each part keeps its own rules, even though you receive one payment. This table sets out the rules that matter once a pension is being paid. For how the schemes are built while you serve, see police pension schemes explained.
| 1987 scheme (PPS) | 2006 scheme (NPPS) | 2015 scheme (CARE) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| How the pension was built | Final salary: 1/60 of average pensionable pay for each of the first 20 years and 2/60 for each year after, up to 40/60 (Home Office members' guide) | Final salary: 1/70 of final pensionable pay for each year of service (reg 28(1)(a)) | Career average: 1/55.3 of each year's pensionable earnings, revalued while you serve (Home Office members' leaflet) |
| Earliest immediate pension on voluntary retirement | 25 years' service, paid from age 50; 30 years' service at any age (reg B1) | Age 55 (regs 18 and 27) | From 55, reduced for early payment; unreduced at normal pension age 60 (PSPA 2013 s.10; regs 50 and 90) |
| Tax-free lump sum | Optional: commute part of the pension using age-related actuarial factors (members' guide section 7.1) | Automatic lump sum of 4/70 of final pensionable pay per year of service, which is four times the pension (reg 28(1)(b)); you may exchange part of it for extra pension (reg 37), but there is no option to commute more pension into cash | Optional: £12 of lump sum for every £1 a year of pension given up, capped at 25% of the cash value of the pension and chosen before the first payment (reg 124) |
| If you left before the earliest point (deferred) | Paid at 60 (reg B5(4)) | Paid at 65 (reg 32(4)) | Paid at State Pension age (reg 91(2)) |
| How it is paid | By the police authority for the force you retired from; the members' guide says pensions are payable in advance, usually monthly | Payable in respect of each month from retirement, by the police authority (regs 81 and 82) | Payable by the scheme manager, which is the police pension authority for your force (reg 9), through its administrator |
| Annual increase | The same CPI-linked public service increase each April (Pensions (Increase) Act 1971 Sch 2 para 43) | As 1987 (Sch 2 para 43) | As 1987 (Sch 2 para 43A) |
| No increase before 55 | Applies unless retired on ill-health grounds or disabled (PIA 1971 s.3) | Applies, same exceptions | Applies, same exceptions |
| Forfeiture after conviction | Only after conviction for treason, Official Secrets Act offences with sentences totalling 10 years or more, or an offence connected with service certified by the Home Secretary (reg K5) | The same three categories (reg 55) | Official Secrets Act or National Security Act 2023 offences with 10 years or more, or a service-connected offence with a Home Secretary's forfeiture certificate (reg 211) |
A 2015 scheme pension of £18,000 a year. If the officer gives up £3,000 a year of it, regulation 124(3) pays a lump sum of £12 for each £1, so £36,000, and the pension in payment becomes £15,000 a year. The April increases then apply to the £15,000, not the original figure. Whether the £36,000 fits within the 25% cap depends on the cash value the scheme actuary sets, which the administrator's quote will show.
The legacy schemes work differently. The 2006 scheme's lump sum is built in: four seventieths of final pensionable pay for each year of service, alongside a pension of one seventieth for each year (reg 28). The 1987 scheme has no automatic lump sum; the Home Office members' guide explains that you exchange part of the pension using a commutation table that depends on your age. Those factors changed in 2026; see commutation factors explained and model the trade-off in the commutation calculator.
Your retirement income: what arrives, when, and how it is taxed
It is easier to plan if you list each source of money separately, with when it starts and how it is taxed. This is information to help you organise your own figures, not a plan.
| Source of income | When it starts | Taxed? | Increases |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lump sum (commutation or 2006 automatic lump sum) | Around retirement, once only | Tax-free within the scheme rules and your lump sum allowance (£268,275 for most people) | None once paid |
| Police pension | From retirement (or later, if deferred) | Yes, as income through PAYE | Each April in line with September CPI, from 55 unless you retired on ill-health grounds |
| State Pension | Your State Pension age, when you claim | Yes, but paid without tax deducted; usually collected through your police pension tax code | Set separately by the government each April |
| Earnings from new work | Whenever you start | Yes, through PAYE or Self Assessment | Depends on the job |
| Survivor's pension (for your partner and children) | After your death | Yes, as the survivor's income | Each April, with no age-55 bar for survivors' pensions |
Three things catch people out:
- The gap before the State Pension. Officers often retire in their fifties, and the State Pension starts at 66 or 67 for most people retiring now. The police pension carries the household alone for those years. See police retirement income and the State Pension gap.
- No increase before 55. If you retire from the 1987 scheme at, say, 50, your pension is not increased for inflation until you reach 55, unless you retired on ill-health grounds (Pensions (Increase) Act 1971 s.3). Over five years that can be a noticeable loss of buying power.
- Tax on two incomes. Once the State Pension starts, or if you work again, all your income is taxed together and the Personal Allowance is usually given against one source. For 2026/27 the allowance is £12,570 and the basic rate band runs to £50,270 (England, Wales and Northern Ireland; Scotland has its own bands). See tax in retirement.
The police pension increase calculator shows what a given April increase does to your annual and monthly pension, including the pro-rata first year. The April 2027 figure will be known when the ONS publishes September 2026 CPI on 21 October 2026; until then, test a range.
Find your question: the retirement guides
Each guide in this series answers one practical question in depth, from the regulations. Start with the one that matches where you are.
Older questions are answered elsewhere on the site: can a police officer lose their pension?, why pension quotes were paused in 2026, how much will my police pension be? and transferring a police pension.
Before you retire: the decisions that are hard to change later
Most of what happens after retirement follows automatically from the rules. A few choices are yours, and they are made before or at retirement. In the order they usually arise:
- Your date. It decides which thresholds you have crossed (25 or 30 years in the 1987 scheme, age 55 in the 2006 and 2015 schemes) and how the first April increase is pro-rated. Check the effect of a few weeks either way in an estimate.
- Your McCloud remedy choice. If you have service between 1 April 2015 and 31 March 2022, you choose whether that period counts in your legacy scheme or the 2015 scheme, using a Remediable Service Statement. The McCloud remedy calculator and McCloud guide explain the comparison.
- How much to commute. Giving up pension for cash is permanent, and the pension you give up would also have attracted every future April increase. See commutation explained and will my lump sum be reduced?
- Cover that stops. Death-in-service cover ends on your last day. If your household relies on it, the protection gap calculator shows what the pension schemes still provide and what they do not.
- Group insurance. Some Federation branches have short deadlines to join a retired members' scheme. Ask your branch before you leave.
Our separate page explains why police pension quotes were paused in May 2026. Whatever the position when you read this, rely on a dated estimate from your administrator, not on an older quote or an online calculator, before you commit to a date or a commutation amount.
Who to contact, for what
Retired officers often get passed between organisations. This is who holds which answer.
| For | Ask | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Pension figures, payment dates, commutation, McCloud choice, survivors | Your force's pension administrator | The Home Office keeps a list of administrator contacts for every force; HR can confirm yours |
| Notice, final pay, leave settlement, kit return | Force HR and payroll | Get the final pay breakdown in writing |
| Your tax code and any refund | HMRC | The pension payer applies the code; only HMRC can change it |
| State Pension forecast, gaps in your record | GOV.UK forecast service; the Future Pension Centre | Check well before your State Pension age |
| Conduct, procedure and federation group insurance before you leave | Your Police Federation or staff association representative | Group insurance after retirement differs by branch |
| Retired officers' association membership | NARPO (independent of PolicePay) | See NARPO explained |
| Free, impartial pensions guidance | MoneyHelper | Pension Wise appointments are for defined contribution pensions, not the police schemes themselves |
| Personal recommendations on large, hard-to-reverse decisions | An FCA-authorised financial adviser | Check the FCA register; we do not recommend advisers |
When you contact your administrator, quote your name, date of birth, National Insurance number, force and pension or payroll number, and ask for answers in writing. Keep copies of every statement, your commutation election and your P60s. If you have a complaint about how your pension is handled, ask the administrator for the scheme's dispute resolution arrangements, which occupational pension schemes must have (Pensions Act 1995 s.50). The Pensions Ombudsman can investigate complaints of maladministration by those running an occupational pension scheme (Pension Schemes Act 1993 s.146); ask the Ombudsman's service or MoneyHelper about the order and time limits that apply to you.
What people get wrong about police retirement
What we could not verify, and how we handled it
- A Home Office statement on compulsory retirement ages. We rely on the Police Federation's 2022 circular and say so; we found no later Home Office statement confirming or contradicting it.
- Payment dates. Set by each administrator. We quote the regulations and the Home Office guide on frequency, not a single date.
- The current administrator for every force. The Home Office list was last updated in September 2023. Confirm with your force HR.
- The April 2027 increase. Not known until the ONS publishes September 2026 CPI on 21 October 2026, and not in law until the 2027 Order is made.
- How a pension is recalculated at 55 for someone who retired younger. The age bar is in the Act; the method is a question for your administrator.
- The 1987 regulations. legislation.gov.uk does not hold them in fully revised form, so we cross-check with the Home Office members' guide and the guides in this series.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the police retirement age?
There is no compulsory retirement age now. The 1987 and 2006 schemes had compulsory ages (60 for constable to chief inspector, 65 above that, from October 2006), but the 2015 scheme has no such power, and the Police Federation's June 2022 circular says forces should not apply them from 1 April 2022. When you can draw your pension is a separate question that depends on your scheme.
When can a police officer retire on a full pension?
It depends on the scheme. In the 1987 scheme, 30 years' service gives an immediate pension at any age, and 25 years' service gives one from age 50; constables and sergeants can also take it from 55 whatever their service. In the 2006 scheme the immediate pension is from 55. In the 2015 scheme the unreduced pension is at normal pension age 60, with reduced payment possible from 55. Most officers have more than one scheme, so ask for an estimate.
How is a police pension paid?
By your former force, as police pension authority, usually through a pension administrator named in the Home Office's contact list. The 2006 regulations make the pension payable in respect of each month from retirement, and the Home Office's 1987 members' guide describes pensions as payable in advance, usually monthly. Payment dates vary by administrator: check yours.
Is a police pension taxable?
Yes. The monthly pension is taxable income, collected through PAYE by the pension payer using a tax code from HMRC. For 2026/27 the Personal Allowance is £12,570, with 20% basic rate tax on income up to £50,270 in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. A lump sum taken within the rules is tax-free.
Does a police pension go up every year?
Yes. Pensions in payment under all three schemes rise each April by the public service pensions increase, which follows CPI in the 12 months to the previous September. April 2026 was 3.8%. The first increase is pro-rated if your pension began in the previous 12 months, and no increase is paid before 55 unless you retired on ill-health grounds.
How much tax-free lump sum can I take from a police pension?
It depends on your scheme and choices. The 2015 scheme pays £12 for each £1 of pension given up, up to 25% of the pension's cash value. The 2006 scheme pays an automatic lump sum of four times the pension. The 1987 scheme uses age-related factors. Tax-free cash is also limited by the £268,275 lump sum allowance, which few police pensions reach.
Can a retired police officer lose their pension?
Only in narrow circumstances, after a criminal conviction. Each scheme allows forfeiture for serious official secrets offences with long sentences (and treason in the 1987 and 2006 schemes), or for an offence connected with police service that the Home Secretary certifies as gravely injurious to the State or liable to lead to serious loss of confidence. A misconduct finding alone does not forfeit a pension.
Can I work after retiring from the police?
Yes. Whether your pension is affected depends on the scheme and the job: re-employment rules mainly concern returning to police service, and the 2015 scheme lets a retired officer who rejoins build new pension. Tell your administrator before you start any work that might count.
What happens to my police pension when I die?
A pension can be paid to a surviving spouse, civil partner or qualifying partner, and to eligible children. The amount and the conditions differ by scheme, and for unmarried partners in the 2006 and 2015 schemes the old requirement for a signed declaration was removed in 2018. Your family must tell the administrator.
Will my police pension stop when I get the State Pension?
No. You receive both. The State Pension is claimed separately at your State Pension age, which you can check on GOV.UK; it is 66 now and rising to 67 between 2026 and 2028. Your forecast may be below the full rate because of years in a contracted-out scheme before April 2016: our State Pension guide explains why.
Who do I contact about my police pension after retiring?
Your force's pension administrator. The Home Office publishes a contact list for every force in England and Wales; many forces use the same outsourced provider and some run pensions in-house. Your former force's HR team can confirm which administrator holds your record.
Is this financial advice?
No. PolicePay is an independent information site and is not authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority. This hub explains the rules and points you to the people who can give figures or advice on your own position.
Sources and how we checked them
Every factual claim on this page was written from the sources below, read on 1 October 2026. Rules and figures change, so check the source for the date you are reading this. Where we could not confirm something from an official or independent source, the page says so rather than guessing. Spotted something out of date? See our corrections policy.
- Home Office: Police pension administrator contacts, England and Wales (updated 15 September 2023) — administration lies locally in each force area; administrator for each force (accessed 1 October 2026)
- Police Federation of England and Wales: BB Circular 007-2022, compulsory retirement ages (14 June 2022) — 1987 reg A18 and 2006 reg 19 ages; no compulsory retirement power in the 2015 scheme; forces should not apply them from 1 April 2022 (accessed 1 October 2026)
- Police Pensions Regulations 2015 (SI 2015/445), latest version, regs 50, 90, 91, 124 and 211 — early payment; deferred pension at State Pension age; 12:1 commutation capped at 25% of cash value, before first payment; forfeiture (accessed 1 October 2026)
- Police Pensions Regulations 2006 (SI 2006/3415), regs 18, 27, 28, 32, 55, 81 and 82 — 1/70 pension and 4/70 lump sum; retirement at 55; deferred at 65; forfeiture; monthly payment by the police authority (accessed 1 October 2026)
- Police Pensions Regulations 1987 (SI 1987/257), regs A18, B1, B5 and K5 (legislation.gov.uk, not fully revised) — ordinary pension at 25 and 30 years; deferred pension at 60; forfeiture (accessed 1 October 2026)
- Home Office: The Police Pension Scheme 1987 members' guide (October 2006) — 1/60 and 2/60 accrual to 40/60; commutation; pensions payable in advance, usually monthly; lump sum normally paid the first working day after retirement (accessed 1 October 2026)
- Public Service Pensions Act 2013, section 10 — normal pension age 60 for police; deferred pension age is State Pension age or 65 if higher (accessed 1 October 2026)
- Pensions (Increase) Act 1971, sections 3 and 8 and Schedule 2 — no increase before 55 unless ill-health or disabled; survivors' and injury pensions excepted; pension treated as beginning the day after service; police pensions are official pensions (Sch 2 paras 43, 43A) (accessed 1 October 2026)
- Pensions Increase (Review) Order 2026 (SI 2026/256) — 3.8% from 6 April 2026; pro-rata for pensions beginning on or after 7 April 2025 (accessed 1 October 2026)
- ONS: Consumer price inflation, UK: August 2026 (16 September 2026) — CPI 3.1% in the 12 months to August 2026; next release 21 October 2026 (accessed 1 October 2026)
- GOV.UK: Income Tax rates and Personal Allowances — 2026/27 Personal Allowance £12,570 and bands for England, Wales and Northern Ireland (accessed 1 October 2026)
- GOV.UK: Tax on your private pension, lump sum allowance — £268,275 lump sum allowance; £1,073,100 lump sum and death benefit allowance; lifetime allowance abolished 6 April 2024 (accessed 1 October 2026)
- GOV.UK: Check your State Pension age — State Pension age by date of birth (accessed 1 October 2026)
- DWP: State Pension age timetable — State Pension age rises from 66 to 67 between 2026 and 2028 (born 6 April 1960 onwards) (accessed 1 October 2026)
- Pensions Act 1995, section 50, and Pension Schemes Act 1993, section 146 — occupational schemes must have dispute resolution arrangements; the Pensions Ombudsman investigates maladministration complaints (accessed 1 October 2026)
- Police Regulations 2003, regulation 14, and Police Pensions Act 1976, section 11 — notice of retirement set by Home Office determination; the chief constable is the police pension authority (accessed 1 October 2026)
On this topic elsewhere
More in this guide series
Pension tools and guides
Disclaimer
PolicePay.co.uk is an independent reference site. It is not authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority and this page is general information, not financial, tax or pension advice, and it cannot consider your personal circumstances. Pension and tax rules change and depend on your scheme, service and tax position: check your pension administrator's statement and, where sums are large or decisions hard to reverse, speak to an FCA-authorised adviser, Pension Wise (free guidance for defined contribution pensions only) or HMRC. Details apply to England and Wales unless stated. Details are as checked on 1 October 2026.