The Local Government Pension Scheme Regulations 1997 (As Amended)

 

Working Copy in force 12th June 1998

 

ARRANGEMENT OF REGULATIONS

PART I[PRELIMINARY PROVISIONS]

1. Citation and commencement.

2. Interpretation.

3. Application to Isles of Scilly.

PART II [PRIMARY PROVISIONS]

 CHAPTER I [MEMBERSHIP]

Eligibility for active membership

4. General eligibility for membership: employees of Scheme employers etc.

5. Agreements to enable employees of non-Scheme employers to be members ("admission agreements").

6. Further restrictions on eligibility.

Joining and leaving the Scheme

7. Joining the Scheme.

8. Leaving the Scheme.

CHAPTER II [COUNTING MEMBERSHIP FOR THE SCHEME]

9. Periods of membership: "total membership".

10. Excluded membership.

11. Length of period of membership: calculation of benefit.

CHAPTER III [CONTRIBUTIONS]

12. Members' contributions.

13. Meaning of "pay".

14. Members with lower rate rights.

15. Employer's discretion to reduce member's contribution rate.

16. Inland Revenue limits on contributions.

17. Obligatory contributions during absences.

18. Optional contributions during absences.

CHAPTER IV [BENEFITS]

Preliminary

19. General qualification for benefits.

20. Calculations.

21. Final pay.

22. Other final pay periods.

23. Permanent reductions in pay: certificates of protection of pension benefits.

24. Revenue limits.

Retirement benefits

25. Normal retirement.

26. Redundancy etc.

27. Ill-health.

28. Amounts of ill-health pension and grant.

29. Re-employed pensioners.

30. Further provisions about elections under regulation 29.

31. Other early leavers: deferred retirement benefits and elections for early payment.

32. Re-employed deferred members.

33. Surrenders of pension.

34. No double entitlement.

35. Requirements as to time of payment.

36. Guaranteed minimum pensions etc.

37. Revaluation of guaranteed minimum.

Death grants

38. Death grants.

39. Reduction of death grants: re-employed pensioners.

 Surviving spouses' pensions

40. Surviving spouse's short-term pension.

41. Surviving spouse's long-term pension.

42. Reduction of some surviving spouses' pensions.

43. Surviving spouse's guaranteed minimum pension.

 Children's pensions

44. Meaning of "eligible child".

45. Children's short-term pensions.

46. Children's long-term pensions.

47. Discretions as to payment of children's pensions.

48. Dependants of re-employed pensioners.

 Commutation

49. Commutation: small pensions.

50. Commutation: exceptional ill-health.

PART III[OPTIONAL ADDITIONAL BENEFITS]

CHAPTER I [LIMITS AFFECTING BENEFITS]

51. Scope of Part III: limits on benefits.

CHAPTER II [INCREASE OF MEMBERSHIP BY EMPLOYING AUTHORITY] 

52. Power of employing authority to increase total membership of members leaving employment at or after 50.

53. Power of employing authority to increase total membership of new members.

54. Effect of increases under this Chapter for older members.

CHAPTER III [MEMBERS' OPTIONS TO INCREASE PENSIONS]

Purchase of added years

55. Payments to increase total membership.

56. Part-time employees.

57. Effect of increases under this Chapter for older members.

Conversion between lump sums and pensions

58. Election for pension in lieu of retirement grant.

59. Election for lump sum in lieu of pension.

CHAPTER IV [ADDITIONAL VOLUNTARY CONTRIBUTIONS]

Members only AVC schemes

60. Elections to pay AVCs.

61. Payment of AVCs.

62. Functions of employing and administering authorities.

63. Death benefits.

64. Retirement benefits.

65. Changes of employment in which membership is continued.

66. Elections as to use of accumulated value of AVCs.

 Shared cost AVC schemes

67. Establishment of SCAVC schemes.

68. Applications to pay SCAVCs.

69. Functions of employing and administering authorities.

70. Application and investment of SCAVCs.

71. Changes of employment in which membership is continued.

72. Termination.

PART IV [ADMINISTRATION]

CHAPTER I [PENSION FUNDS AND EMPLOYERS' PAYMENTS]

Pension funds

73. The pension funds.

74. Appropriate funds.

75. Admission agreement funds.

76. Accounts and audit.

77. Actuarial valuations and certificates.

78. Special circumstances where actuarial valuations and certificates must be obtained.

 Employers' liability to make payments

79. Employer's contributions.

80. Employer's further payments.

81. Payments by employing authorities to appropriate administering authorities.

 Interest

82. Interest.

CHAPTER II [MEMBERS' CONTRIBUTIONS]

83. Discontinuance of additional contributions.

84. Separate treatment of AVCs and SCAVCs from other contributions.

85. Over-provision: calculation and return of surplus AVC and SCAVC funds.

86. Cost of calculations for transfer of AVCs or SCAVCs into the Scheme where no transfer is requested.

87. Rights to return of contributions.

88. Exclusion of rights to return of contributions.

89. Deduction and recovery of member's contributions.

CHAPTER III[PAYMENT OF BENEFITS ETC]

90. Pension increases and cash equivalents under the Pension Schemes Act 1993.

91. Pension increases under the Pensions (Increase) Acts.

92. Contributions equivalent premiums.

93. Commencement of pensions.

94. Interest on late payment of certain benefits.

95. Payments due in respect of deceased persons.

96. Non-assignability.

CHAPTER IV [DETERMINATIONS, INFORMATION AND RECORDS]

Initial determinations of questions

97. First instance decisions.

98. Notification of decisions under regulation 97.

 Resolution of disputes

99. Appointment of persons to resolve disputes.

100. Right to apply for an appointed person to decide a disagreement.

101. Notice of decisions by appointed persons under regulation 100.

102. Reference of disagreement to the Secretary of State.

103. Notice of decisions by the Secretary of State under regulation 102.

104. Rights of representation.

105. Appeals by administering authorities.

Information and records

106. Statements of policy concerning exercise of discretionary functions.

107. Information to be supplied by employees.

108. Exchange of information by authorities.

108A. Provision of information, charging and prescribed persons

CHAPTER V [SPECIAL ADJUSTMENTS]

Abatement during new employment

109. Statements of policy concerning abatement of retirement pensions in new employment.

110. Application of abatement policy in individual cases.

Misconduct

111. Forfeiture of pension rights after conviction of employment-related offences.

112. Interim payments directions.

113. Recovery or retention where former member has misconduct obligation.

114. Protection of GMP rights.

115. Transfer of sums from the pension fund to compensate for former member's misconduct.

CHAPTER VI [TRANSFERS]

Transfers out

116. Application of Chapter IV of Part IV of the Pension Schemes Act 1993.

117. Rights to payment out of fund authority's pension fund.

118. Contracting-out requirements affecting transfers out.

Bulk transfer arrangements

119. Bulk transfers (transfers of undertakings) etc.

120. Calculation of amount of transfer payment under regulation 119.

Transfers in

121. Inward transfers of pension rights

122. Right to count credited period.

122A. Credited periods for transferring members with mis-sold pension rights

123. Rights as to service not matched by credited period.

 Communities' scheme transferees

124. Community scheme transferees.

 Payments between authorities

125. Changes of fund.

126. Liability for combined benefits.

PART V [SPECIAL CASES]

CHAPTER I [ELIGIBILITY]

127. Eligibility for active membership: employees etc. of non-Scheme employers.

128. Supplementary provisions about employees within regulation 127.

129. Miscellaneous transport employees.

130. Miscellaneous airport employees.

131. Further cases of eligibility: non-employees.

132. Separate employments etc.

CHAPTER II[MODIFICATIONS FOR CERTAIN EMPLOYEES ETC]

Members who may retire at 70 etc.

133. Members employed by magistrates' courts committees.

134. Certain employees of the committee of magistrates for the inner London area.

135. Coroners.

 Employees of probation committees

136. Employees of probation committees.

City of London and other contributory employees

137. Certain City of London employees and former contributors.

Local government re-organisations

138. Transfers under the Local Government Act 1992 etc.

139. Local government reorganisation.

140. Former employees of Manchester Corporation.

141. Transferees under s.18(4)(a) of the National Health Service Reorganisation Act 1973.

 Reduction of pensions of certain former teachers

142. Deduction for teachers' pension payments.

 Conversion of Discretionary Payments Regulations

periods into membership

143. Conversion of periods credited under Discretionary Payments Regulations etc. into membership.

Environment Agency Closed Fund

144. The Environment Agency Closed Fund

 Rights under section 12 of the Superannuation Act 1972

145. Rights under section 12 of the Superannuation Act 1972.

Schedules-

Schedule 1 Interpretation.

Schedule 2 Scheme employers.

Schedule 3 Excluded membership.

Schedule 4 Revenue limits.

Schedule 5 Appropriate funds.

Schedule 5A MIS-SOLD PENSIONS

Schedule 6 Certain City of London employees and former contributors.

 

 The Secretary of State, in exercise of the powers conferred on him by sections 7 and 12 of the Superannuation Act 1972 and of all other powers enabling him in that behalf, after consultation with such associations of local authorities as appeared to him to be concerned, the local authorities with whom consultation appeared to him to be desirable and such representatives of other persons likely to be affected by the Regulations as appeared to him to be appropriate, hereby makes the following Regulations:-