FAQs

Transferring your Teachers Scheme benefits to another pension scheme 

You can ask for a transfer payment to be made to your new employer’s pension scheme. The transfer payment will be equal to the cash value of your benefits. You must apply within 12 months of the date you left the scheme and before we start paying your pension benefits.

For a transfer to be carried out, your new employer’s scheme must satisfy the conditions below:

1. Tax approved on the Isle of Man or a HMRC registered pension scheme; and
2. Is a Public Service Pension Scheme, either on the Isle of Man, United Kingdom or overseas if it is an  HMRC recognised overseas pension scheme and has QROPS status; or
3. Is an employer sponsored occupational pension scheme, either on the Isle of Man, United Kingdom or overseas if it is an HMRC recognised overseas pension scheme and has QROPS status.  

Please note that from 21 January 2015 the Public Sector Pensions Authority introduced its Transfer Policy that placed restrictions on the types of pension arrangements it would permit members to transfer to. Further information on the restrictions can be found in our Transfer Policy.

As a result of this policy, the PSPA will no longer permit transfers to: 

• An Isle of Man or United Kingdom individual or group personal pension arrangement (whether supported or not by employer contributions)
• An Isle of Man or United Kingdom Self Invested Personal Pension Plan
• An Isle of Man or United Kingdom Stakeholder Pension or “buy-out” pension arrangement
• A personal pension plan or equivalent overseas individual pension arrangement when the individual is not resident in that country

If you want to transfer your benefits to your new employer’s occupational scheme, the PSPA would recommend that you read the Transfer Out Factsheet, which has some useful information that you should consider before making your decision. 

If you wish to go ahead and request a transfer then please complete a Transfer Value Out Investigation Request Form and send it to us.  

Seeking Independent Financial Advice

The PSPA would urge all members who are considering transferring out of their public sector scheme, to seek the advice of an independent financial adviser. For more information on appointing an appropriately qualified and experienced adviser please refer to the information on Independent Financial Advisers.

If you think you might need a bigger pension, there are two  options available to you via the Teachers' Scheme into which you can pay additional contributions to boost your retirement income.

Group Personal Pension Plan  

The PSPA have selected a Group Personal Pension Scheme, which is provided for by Aviva and administered by MAC Financial Services.

This arrangement lets you to pay additional voluntary contributions to boost your retirement savings. Using this method, you can save what you can afford to at different times of your life.

This type of pension scheme is known as a defined contribution pension scheme. This is your own retirement account with Aviva and means that the benefits you receive from it when you retire are based on:

• how much you contribute
• the performance of your investment options you choose
• the cost of buying a retirement income when you retire
• When you retire you use this fund to buy an additional pension for you (or for you and your dependants). You can also take some of this money as a cash lump sum.

The most that you can save in additional contributions is 100% of your taxable pay, less your Teachers‟ Pension Scheme contributions.

To find out more, read the Group Personal Pension Scheme announcement

Added Pension 

You can also buy additional pension to increase your pension benefits when you retire. Additional Pension is calculated separately from your regular pension benefits. You can buy it in units of £250 up to the age of 65 and buy it for yourself, or for yourself and your adult beneficiary. How you pay is up to you. You can pay by regular deductions from your salary or by a one-off lump sum.

For more information or a quote contact the PSPA on +44 1624 685598 or email your request to pensions@pspa.im.

If you and your spouse or civil partner decide to legally end your relationship, you may need to request information on the value of your pension.

This is to allow the courts to consider whether or not your pension should be shared with your partner, and by how much.

You can ask us to calculate a Cash Equivalent Transfer Value (CETV) representing the cash value of the benefits you've accrued in the scheme, including your pension, lump sum and surviving dependant's pension.

The court may award a percentage of this CETV to your ex-spouse or ex-civil partner, giving them pension benefits based upon the amount awarded by the court.

If you receive a pension sharing order, your pension benefits will be reduced to take this into account. They become a credit member of the pension scheme.

To find out more on how this process will work then please read the PSPA Guide to Divorce and Dissolution.

If you want to request a CETV then please complete the Application Form.

For information regarding charges see our Charges for an estimate page.