Becoming a member of the Scottish Teachers’ Pension Scheme

All new full and part-time teachers and lecturers in Scotland are automatically enrolled in the Scottish Teachers’ Pension Scheme as long as they’re aged between 16 and 75 and work in an establishment maintained by a local authority or grant aided by Scottish Ministers, or in an independent school or a further or higher education establishment that’s been accepted into the Teachers’ 2015 scheme.

New teachers in Scotland who have contributed to a public sector pension scheme within the last five years, may be eligible to join the Scottish Teachers’ Final Salary scheme. Contact us for more information.

A valuable benefit

Membership of the scheme is a valuable benefit. It’s a defined benefit scheme and after 2 years of qualifying service, you’ll be entitled to receive a pension payable for life when you retire.

Both you and your employer contribute towards the cost of your pension. Deductions are taken directly from your salary by your payroll department and you receive tax relief on your contributions.

How the scheme works

The Scottish Teachers’ Pension Scheme 2015 is a Career Average Re-valued Earnings (CARE) scheme which allows you to accumulate 1/57th of your pensionable earnings each year you’re a member. That amount is then revalued each year until you retire using the Consumer Price Index plus 1.6%. 

The scheme also has a number of other benefits for qualifying members, including:

  • The option to give up some of your pension for a tax-free lump sum in retirement
  • a range of benefits for your dependants should you die
  • Early retirement options should you become too ill to work.

Topping up your pension and transferring in

The Teachers’ Scheme also offers a number of ways to increase the value of the pension you’ll receive in retirement. These include:

Opting out

Although new members are automatically enrolled, you can opt out of the Scottish Teachers’ Pension Scheme.

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