Transferring to an Australian force
from a UK police force

Resigning to join an Australian force is, for pension purposes, the same as resigning for any other reason. Where you live afterwards does not change your entitlement. What matters is your scheme, your age and your qualifying service on the day you leave. These are the rules we use across the site, checked against the regulations:

Three practical points for someone heading to Australia:

• The 2015 scheme payment age is your State Pension age, not 60. That is the rule that surprises leavers most. If you are in your thirties now, your State Pension age is likely to be 67 or later, and the 2015 part of your pension waits until then unless you take it early with a reduction.
• Many officers have more than one scheme. If you joined before April 2015 you may have 1987 or 2006 benefits as well as 2015 benefits, each with its own payment age. Ask for a statement that covers every period.
• The 2-year line matters if you are early in service. WA's minimum of 2 years 8 months clears it, but if you are close to two years' qualifying service when you apply anywhere, check the date before you resign: below it, you get a refund rather than a pension.

Our Police Pension Exit Report works out in pounds what you keep if you resign, and the guide to resigning from the police covers each scheme in more depth. For the Australian side of the same question (super, becoming an Australian tax resident and how the two fit together) see Police Pay Australia's UK police pension and moving to Australia.

McCloud: your choice comes with you

If you were in a police scheme between 1 April 2015 and 31 March 2022, the McCloud remedy applies to that service. Active and deferred members make a deferred choice between legacy and 2015 scheme benefits for that period when they claim their pension, under the Public Service Pensions and Judicial Offices Act 2022 and the Police Pensions (Remediable Service) Regulations 2023. Leaving for Australia does not take the choice away; it means you will make it from overseas, possibly decades from now.

Two things to do before you go: keep every remediable service statement you receive, and make sure the administrator can reach you, because the timing rules are tight (you tell the scheme 6 to 3 months before you want benefits paid and choose within 12 weeks of your statement). Our McCloud remedy guide explains the choice.

Short answer: almost certainly not, and the reason is UK law, not Australian.

The police pension schemes are unfunded public service defined benefit schemes. Since 6 April 2015, a member of an unfunded public service defined benefit scheme can only transfer to a scheme that does not provide flexible benefits (Pension Schemes Act 1993, s.95(2A), inserted by the Pension Schemes Act 2015, s.68). Flexible benefits include money purchase (defined contribution) benefits, and most Australian super is accumulation savings of that kind.

Even where a transfer abroad is legally possible from other UK schemes, it has to go to a Qualifying Recognised Overseas Pension Scheme (QROPS) to avoid UK unauthorised payment tax charges, and an overseas transfer charge of 25% can apply unless, among other exemptions, you live in the same country as the receiving scheme. HMRC's list of recognised overseas pension schemes includes a large number of Australian funds, but that does not help a police member: the barrier is on the UK side, in s.95(2A). Our reading is that Australian accumulation super counts as flexible benefits for this purpose, which rules it out; we found no HMRC statement saying so in terms, so confirm with your pension administrator before anyone spends money on a transfer.

In practice, officers who move to Australia leave their police pension in the UK as a deferred pension and build super alongside it. The Queensland Police Service's own FAQ answers the question "Can I transfer my pension scheme over to the QPS?" by explaining compulsory super and pointing to its super fund, not by offering a transfer. Our guide to transferring into or out of the police pension covers the transfer rules in full.

This is the question most guides skip, and the answer is better than many officers fear. The 2003 UK and Australia double taxation convention deals with pensions in Article 17: "Pensions (including government pensions) and annuities paid to a resident of a Contracting State shall be taxable only in that State." Article 18 (government service) covers salaries, not pensions.

So once you are resident in Australia for tax purposes, your UK police pension is normally taxable only in Australia under the treaty. It does not matter that it is a public service pension. Australian tax then applies under Australian rules, which we do not cover here; ask a tax adviser who knows both systems, or start with Police Pay Australia's guide to the Australian side.

• You have to claim. The pension payer will deduct UK tax under PAYE until HMRC tells it not to. HMRC publishes form Australia-Individual 2003 for claiming relief at source from UK income tax under the treaty.
• Permanent visa holders only. HMRC's PAYE manual says relief from UK income tax under the treaty is only available to permanent visa holders of Australia. The 186 visa the forces use is permanent, so that should not be a barrier, but keep proof of your visa.
• Lump sums are unclear. Article 17 does not mention lump sums, and we found no HMRC statement on how a commuted police pension lump sum is treated for someone living in Australia. If you plan to commute part of your pension after you move, take advice first.
• The year you leave. HMRC's P85 lets you tell it you have left the UK and claim back tax from your UK employment (or you complete the residence pages, SA109, if you file Self Assessment). Your residence status for each tax year is decided by the Statutory Residence Test.

Our guide to tax on your police pension explains how the pension is taxed while you live in the UK, which is the position if you come back.

Your UK State Pension is separate from your police pension. You can still claim it from Australia, but GOV.UK says it only rises each year if you live in the EEA, Gibraltar, Switzerland or a country with a qualifying social security agreement: "You will not get yearly increases if you live outside these countries." Australia is not on that list, and the Social Security Benefits Up-rating Regulations 2026 again restrict increases where the person is not ordinarily resident in Great Britain. In practice your State Pension is frozen: it stays at the same weekly amount for as long as you live in Australia.

That matters more than it sounds. Over a 20 or 30-year retirement, a pension that never increases loses a large part of its buying power. It is one reason to check your National Insurance record and forecast on GOV.UK before you go.

Voluntary National Insurance from abroad: the April 2026 change

You may be able to fill gaps in your NI record while you live abroad, but the rules tightened from 6 April 2026:

• You can no longer pay the cheaper voluntary Class 2 contributions for time abroad.
• You can apply to pay Class 3 for time abroad after 5 April 2026 if you have previously lived in the UK for 10 years in a row or paid 10 years of qualifying contributions in total. Most officers will meet one of these.
• The Class 3 rate for 2026/27 is £18.40 a week.
• There is a transitional rule if you had already applied for 2024/25 or 2025/26 by 5 April 2026; check GOV.UK if that is you.

Whether paying is worth it depends on your record and how long you will live to draw a frozen pension. Get a forecast first. Our State Pension and bridging guide explains how the State Pension fits alongside a police pension.