Estimate your NHS 2015 Scheme pension: career-average build-up at 1/54, contribution tier and optional lump sum.
By Konstantin Iakovlev · Founder, Calks.uk
Last updated: · Verified against HMRC and GOV.UK 2026/27 rates
Rates verified: 6 July 2026
Quick Answer
The NHS 2015 Scheme is career-average: every year you bank 1/54 of your pensionable pay as annual pension, revalued at CPI + 1.5% while you keep working. A nurse on £38,000 banks ~£704 of yearly pension each year; over a 30-year career that compounds to a projected pension of roughly £34,000/year from State Pension age, inflation-protected for life.
Your Agenda for Change / medical basic pay
Projected Annual NHS Pension
£33,902.73
£2,825.23/month from State Pension age, for life, inflation-protected
Banked This Year
£703.70
Your Contribution
9.8%
Cost/Month (gross)
£310.33
After Tax Relief*
£248.27
Optional tax-free lump sum: exchange pension at £12 lump sum per £1 given up — up to £101,708.20 lump sum with a reduced pension of £25,427.05/year.
*Contributions come out before tax. Estimate assumes your current pay continues and CPI+1.5% revaluation (2015 scheme only — 1995/2008 legacy and McCloud remedy service is on top). Check your Total Reward Statement for exact figures.
Disclaimer
This calculator is provided for informational purposes only and should not be considered as financial or tax advice. All calculations are performed locally in your browser — no personal data is collected or sent to our servers. Rates and thresholds are sourced from HMRC and GOV.UK and are updated for the current tax year. Always verify results with HMRC or consult a qualified professional before making financial decisions.
How It Works
Since April 2022 all active NHS staff build pension in the 2015 Scheme, a career-average (CARE) arrangement. Each scheme year you earn a pension credit of 1/54 of that year's pensionable pay. The credit is then revalued every year you remain in service at CPI + 1.5% — deliberately faster than prices, so early-career earnings do not wither away.
Member contributions are tiered by pay: from 5.2% on the lowest band to 12.5% at the top. Contributions are taken before tax, so the real cost is 20–45% lower than the headline rate. Your employer adds 23.7% — one reason the NHS pension is widely considered the best part of the AfC package.
The pension is payable in full from your State Pension age. Taking it earlier reduces it (roughly 4–5% per year early); working past NPA earns late-retirement uplifts. At retirement you can exchange pension for a tax-free lump sum at £12 of lump sum per £1 of pension given up, to a maximum of about 25% of the pot's capital value.
Service before 2022 in the 1995 or 2008 sections (including the McCloud remedy period 2015–2022, for which eligible members choose the better scheme at retirement) is calculated separately on final-salary rules and paid on top of the figure here.
This calculator projects your 2015-scheme pension assuming your current pay continues and standard revaluation. The definitive numbers are on your Total Reward Statement (TRS) — check it annually, and consider Additional Pension or AVCs if you want to retire before State Pension age.
Example: Band 6 nurse, £38,000, 10 years in + 20 to go
- Each year banks £38,000 ÷ 54 = £703.70 of annual pension
- Already banked: ~£7,037 (10 years), revaluing at CPI + 1.5% while active
- With 20 more years the projection compounds to about £33,900/year at State Pension age
- Contribution tier at £38,000: 9.8% = £310/month gross, ~£248 after basic-rate tax relief
- Optional: swap 25% for a tax-free lump sum of ~£18,000 (£12 per £1 of pension)
Frequently Asked Questions
- How does the NHS 2015 pension actually build up?
- It is a career-average (CARE) scheme, not a pot of invested money. Each scheme year you "bank" 1/54 of that year's pensionable pay as annual pension — on £38,000 that is £703.70. While you stay in NHS employment, everything already banked is revalued each April at CPI + 1.5%, so it grows faster than prices. The result after a full career is a guaranteed, index-linked income for life from State Pension age, plus generous ill-health and death-in-service cover. There is no investment risk: the amount is defined by the formula, backed by the Exchequer, regardless of markets. Source: NHSBSA.
- How much do I contribute to the NHS pension — and is it worth it?
- Member rates are tiered by actual pensionable pay, from 5.2% on the lowest earnings to 12.5% at the top (a Band 6 nurse around £38,000 pays 9.8%). Contributions are deducted before tax, so the net cost of that 9.8% is roughly 7.8% at basic rate. In exchange, one year's membership on £38,000 buys £703.70 of index-linked annual pension for life — buying the same income privately as an annuity would cost £15,000–£20,000. The employer contribution is 23.7%. For almost everyone, opting out is giving up part of your salary. Source: NHSBSA, NHS Employers.
- What about my pre-2022 service and the McCloud remedy?
- Service before April 2022 sits in the legacy 1995 or 2008 sections, calculated on final-salary rules with different Normal Pension Ages (60 in the 1995 section, 65 in 2008) — it is paid in addition to your 2015 CARE pension. For the remedy period (April 2015 – March 2022), the McCloud age-discrimination ruling gives affected members a choice at retirement between legacy and 2015 benefits for those seven years, whichever is better. Your Total Reward Statement shows each element separately. This calculator covers the 2015 scheme only, so treat legacy service as an addition on top. Source: NHSBSA McCloud remedy hub.
- Can I retire before State Pension age on an NHS pension?
- Yes, from age 55 (rising to 57 from April 2028), but the 2015-scheme pension is actuarially reduced by roughly 4–5% for each year you draw it early — retiring 5 years before State Pension age cuts it by around 20–23% for life. Options to soften this: buy Early Retirement Reduction Buy Out (ERRBO) during your career, build separate AVCs or a SIPP to bridge the early years, or use partial retirement (draw down up to 100% of the pension while continuing to work reduced hours — allowed since October 2023). Working beyond your NPA earns late-retirement uplifts instead. Source: NHSBSA.