Ballistic Profile
Have a read of this chum, it might help explain some more for you:
https://forcespensionsociety.org/new...-right-can-it/
The really good advice is this bit:
Q. Many people say it is not worth me being promoted because of this!
A. You will always be better off as a result of promotion. We have had people talk about leaving the services to avoid the charge, opting out of the scheme or joining a different scheme. None of these are particularly good ideas. Someone who is promoted, and breaches, and pays a tax charge, will be better off financially than someone who does none of those things. What I say to people is it’s like joining the services and saying “I will stay as a corporal throughout my entire career because by doing so I will never pay tax at 40% – that’ll show ‘em!” Besides, if you leave to avoid this you will almost certainly have to take up some other career with a pension scheme which will be also subjected to annual allowance – it does not just apply exclusively to the Armed Forces!