If you were aged 45 or over on 1 Apr 12 and in the 'Protected Cohort' who will not transfer to AFPS 15, then the IBN says that you will be allowed to serve on the new commissions/engagements, even if they take you past age 55. However you will not be able to transfer to AFPS 15 because the 'Protected Cohort' was defined as those personnel within 10 years of their Normal Pension Age (age 55) on 1 Apr 12. As a member of AFPS 75/AFPS 05, the Normal Pension Age of 55 will not change, even if the Service allowed you to serve past the Normal Retirement Date. Therefore, you remain within the 'Protected Cohort' on AFPS75/AFPS05. There is no scope to change this as the transitional protections offered to members of existing schemes have been set by HM Treasury and apply across the Public Sector.
Reading the above brings 2 questions to mind:
1. For those in the 'protected cohort', will there be a pay increase once the pension can no longer be contributed to? - by the same amount, pay is currently abated?
2. More a question for our pension specialists but isn't the govt trying to ensure that all companies should enable employees to contribute to a pension? How would that 5 year gap be covered between pension stopping at 55 but working until the age of 60?
Any guesses?