Firefighter pension (FPS 2015): how much you build and when

What FPS 2015 is and who is in it

FPS 2015 is the firefighters' pension scheme for England introduced on 1 April 2015 as part of public service pension reform. It is a defined benefit scheme, meaning it promises a pension calculated by a formula rather than paying out the value of an investment fund. It replaced the earlier 1992 and 2006 schemes for most members, although some members with earlier service were given transitional protection, which is the origin of the McCloud remedy described below.

Wales has its own firefighters' pension regulations with a similar design, Scotland's scheme is run by the Scottish Public Pensions Agency (SPPA) with different accrual and contribution rates, and Northern Ireland has its own scheme. This guide focuses on England and points out where the others differ. For Wales see the Welsh firefighter pension scheme, and for Scotland see the Scottish firefighter pension scheme.

Operational firefighters, and in many services on-call firefighters, are eligible to join. Joining and contribution rules for part-time and on-call staff depend on the scheme's rules and your contract, so ask your pension administrator how membership works in your case; the guide on on-call firefighter pensions covers this.

How a year of pension builds: the 1/59.7 rule

For each scheme year (1 April to 31 March), your pensionable pay is divided by 59.7 and the result is added to your pension account as annual pension. GOV.UK's description of the scheme design gives the accrual rate as 1/59.7, compared with 1/60 in the 2006 scheme. The amount is annual pension, not a cash balance.

For a competent firefighter on £40,358 the calculation is £40,358 ÷ 59.7 ≈ £676 of annual pension for that year. A development firefighter on £31,539 builds about £528, a watch manager at competent B on £50,034 about £838, and a station manager at competent B on £57,402 about £962. While you remain an active member the benefits already built up are revalued each year under the scheme rules, so the account grows with time; the rate is set by the scheme rules and your administrator can tell you the figure applied to your statement.

The result is that pension builds in proportion to what you earn in each year, rather than being based on your final salary. Promotion increases what you build from that point but does not increase the pension you built earlier, apart from revaluation. That makes it worth knowing which parts of your pay count as pensionable; see overtime after tax for how pensionable pay affects a real payslip.

Worked examples: 20, 25 and 30 years

The table shows what pay-divided-by-59.7 produces if you stayed on the same pay for the whole period. It is deliberately simple: it ignores revaluation, promotions, pay awards and the tax position, so it understates what a real career would show in cash terms, and it is not a forecast. It does help you see the scale: a full 30-year career at competent firefighter pay would build about £20,280 a year, or £1,690 a month.

In practice most members are promoted or receive pay awards, so the average pensionable pay over a career is higher than today's entry pay. For a personal figure, use your annual benefit statement and the pension calculator. To see the effect of taking a tax-free lump sum in exchange for a lower pension, see pension lump sum and commutation.

Contributions: what you pay for the pension

Members pay a percentage of pensionable pay into the scheme. These contributions do not sit in an investment pot in your name; they are the member's share of the cost of a scheme that pays defined benefits. From 1 April 2026 the English FPS 2015 structure uses actual pensionable earnings and five bands from 11.09% to 17.09%. A competent firefighter on £40,358 pays 12.59%, or about £5,081 a year, while a development firefighter pays 11.09%.

Contributions normally come out of pay before income tax, so the net effect on take-home pay is smaller than the gross figure. For the competent firefighter, the £5,081 contribution reduces annual take-home pay by about £4,065 because roughly £1,016 of income tax is saved; National Insurance is calculated on the higher pre-pension figure. See the contribution rates guide for every band, the Scottish bands and a table by pay point.

Because the rate depends on pensionable earnings, watch managers and above pay a higher percentage. At £45,711 (watch manager development) the English rate is 14.09%, above the 12.59% band that ends at £45,407. The contributions calculator shows where you sit.

Retirement age and early retirement

The normal pension age in FPS 2015 is 60, and GOV.UK's scheme description also provides for retirement from age 55 with reductions. Taking pension earlier than 60 means it is paid for longer, so the scheme applies actuarial reduction factors. The reductions published in the original 2014 scheme design were about 4.8% at 59, 9.5% at 58, 13.9% at 57, 17.9% at 56 and 21.8% at 55; the source page has been withdrawn and factors can be reviewed, so treat these as illustrations and ask your administrator for a current figure.

An early retirement example: a member with a £20,000 annual pension at 60 who retired at 57 would have a reduction of roughly 13.9%, leaving about £17,220, and the pension would be paid for three more years. That does not include the lump sum. Whether earlier retirement is worthwhile depends on other income, health, and how long you expect to draw the pension.

Ill-health retirement follows separate rules and can pay enhanced benefits when someone can no longer perform firefighting duties; see firefighter ill-health retirement. For age and timing decisions see firefighter pension retirement age and early retirement.

Death, dependants and other protections

The scheme also provides benefits if a member dies in service or after retirement, and pensions for eligible dependants, along with ill-health protections. The precise amounts depend on service, the type of death and the dependant, and are set in the scheme rules, so they are not reproduced here. See firefighter pension death benefits for a fuller explanation.

Pensions in payment normally increase each year in line with prices under public service pension increase rules, which protects their real value. Because this is a defined benefit promise, the member does not bear investment risk in the way they would with a defined contribution pot. That is one reason many members regard the scheme as valuable even at the higher contribution bands.

It also helps to remember what the scheme is not: it does not depend on how markets perform, and the pension you have earned is not reduced by short-term economic changes. The trade-off is that the promise is fixed by formula, so the way to increase it is to earn more pensionable pay, stay in service longer or, where the rules allow, buy additional benefits through the scheme's own options. Ask your administrator what options exist, and what deadlines apply to them.

Two other matters to check: what counts as pensionable pay (for example, whether allowances or overtime count), and whether you have any earlier service in the 1992 or 2006 scheme. The former changes what you build each year; the latter changes which schemes make up your total benefit.

The McCloud remedy and legacy schemes

When the 2015 scheme opened, older members were given transitional protection that allowed them to stay in the legacy 1992 or 2006 schemes for longer. The courts found this treated younger members less favourably on grounds of age. The remedy covers 1 April 2015 to 31 March 2022, and those in scope have a choice between legacy and reformed benefits for that period, as explained on GOV.UK.

In summary, if you were in pensionable service on or before 31 March 2012 and again on or after 1 April 2015, without a disqualifying break in service, you are likely to be in scope. Active and deferred members make their choice through a Deferred Choice Underpin near retirement, while pensioners were given an immediate choice. Our full guide, McCloud remedy explained, covers the process and what to check on a Remediable Service Statement.

For members who joined after 1 April 2012, the remedy does not apply because they were not in service at the qualifying date, and their pension is simply FPS 2015. Members with a mixture of schemes can see the differences in FPS 1992 vs 2006 vs 2015.

How to check and plan your own pension

The best starting point is your annual benefit statement from your scheme administrator, which shows the pension built to date, the value at your normal retirement age and, where relevant, remedy information. Read it with your payslip: the pensionable pay on the statement should match your records. If figures do not look right, query them early because missing service or pay data can affect the outcome.

For projections, a calculator lets you test different pay paths and retirement ages. Start with the pension calculator, add promotion assumptions using the promotion calculator, and cross-check contributions with the contribution guide. To understand the effect of a lump sum, use the pension lump sum calculator.

Finally, remember that FPS 2015 is one part of retirement income. Other sources include the State Pension, and there may be tax on large pensions; see firefighter pension and State Pension and, for high earners, annual allowance tax.