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Transferring pension in

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You can bring previous pension rights from schemes in the Public Sector Transfer Club into the Fund.  You must  do this within 12 months of joining the fund.

Your former scheme will be able to tell you if they are part of the Transfer Club or you can see the public sector transfer club list here.

Some of the schemes who participate are:

  • all other Funds administering the Local Government Pension Scheme
  • the Civil Service pension scheme
  • the NHS pension schemes
  • the teachers' pension schemes
  • the Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS Ltd)
  • the Armed Forces pension scheme
  • the Police and Fire pension schemes

We will not accept transfers from personal pensions or schemes not in the Public Sector Transfer Club.

12 month transfer in period

You have 12 months from the date you join the Scheme to tell us you want to transfer previous pension rights into the Fund. For example if you joined on 29 September 2010 you will have until 28 September 2011 to start the transfer process.

You must apply for a transfer within the 12 month timescale. Late applications outwith this period will only be considered if there is evidence that scheme documentation was not provided. and are subject to the new transfer even if you joined before 1 OCtober 2009.  Your employer's permission is required for a late transfer.

How the transfer process works

Please note that the transfer process can take several months to carry out as the information has to be obtained from your previous pension fund. The steps in carrying out a transfer are:

Step 1  receive your written application to investigate a transfer

Step 2  write to your former scheme and request a transfer value estimate

Step 3  tell you how much the estimated transfer value will give you in this scheme

Step 4  receive your written authority to proceed with the transfer
NB:If you wish to accept the transfer offer it is important that we receive your decision promptly. Any delay may result in a charge being made by your previous scheme. If you decide not to go ahead with a transfer, you can not revisit it at a later date.

Step 5  request payment of the transfer value from your former scheme

Step 6  once we get the payment we will update your pension record and let you know the actual membership purchased

If you have any enquiries about our policy or need further information you can contact us on 0131 529 4638 or email us at pensions@lpf.org.uk.