PTM062215 - Member benefits: pensions: protected pension age: right to take benefits before age 57

As of 6 April 2024 there is no longer lifetime allowance. If you are looking for information about protections, enhancement factors and the lifetime allowance charge please see these pages on The National Archives. If you are looking for information about the principles of lifetime allowance and benefit crystallisation events please see these pages of The National Archives.

Glossary PTM000001
 

2028 protected pension age
Eligibility requirements
Substantive transfer
Reporting the benefits before normal minimum pension age to HMRC

2028 protected pension age

Paragraph 23ZB schedule 36 Finance Act 2004

The normal minimum pension age at which members can take benefits will increase from age 55 to 57 from 6 April 2028. Some members have a protected pension age in their pension scheme, which is the right to take benefits before age 57.

A protected pension age applies on a scheme-by-scheme basis. A member may have a protected pension age under one scheme, but not under another. A member may have different protected pension ages under different pension schemes.

The member will have a protected pension age under the scheme if they:

Eligibility requirements

For a member to have a protected pension age under the scheme, all the following conditions must be met:

  • before 4 November 2021 the member had the right to take a pension or lump sum, or both, before they reached age 57
  • that right was unqualified, in that the member doesn’t need anyone’s consent to take their benefits. PTM062210 explains more about what is meant by an unqualified right
  • on 11 February 2021 the scheme rules included provision to pay benefits before age 57.

These requirements are known under the legislation as the 'entitlement condition'. Where these conditions are met, the member’s protected pension age under the scheme will be the age at which they have the right to take benefits immediately before 4 November 2021.

Substantive transfer

A member who, on 4 November 2021, was in the process of a substantive transfer to a scheme under which they would have met the eligibility requirement may benefit from a protected pension age. A substantive transfer is where a member has made a request to the scheme administrator or scheme manager of their pension scheme on which they are required to act in relation to the transfer. This means an instruction from the member to transfer a specific monetary amount or percentage of their pension funds to a named pension scheme. A casual enquiry is not a substantive transfer request.

Where a substantive transfer to Scheme A is requested before 4 November 2021, but is not completed and instead the funds are sent to Scheme B, that transfer is not a pre-4 November 2021 requested transfer. This is because the funds have not been sent to the scheme included in the transfer request made before 4 November 2021.


Reporting the benefits before normal minimum pension age to HMRC

Scheme administrators must report payment of certain benefits before normal minimum pension age on the Event Report. PTM161300 provides guidance on when a report needs to be made and the information that must be provided.