Moving between fire services and relocating: pay and pension

Transfer versus move: what this guide covers

Our guide to transferring between fire services explains the selection side: whether a service is accepting transferees, what evidence of competence it needs, and how to compare pay point, duty system and terms. This guide picks up once you are thinking about the practical consequences: the cost of relocating, how leave and pay settle, what happens to your pension record, and how to time the move.

Inter-service transfer processes advertised through the National Fire Chiefs Council jobs board give a flavour. For example, services seek applications from substantive, competent wholetime firefighters currently serving in local authority fire and rescue services, with competence evidenced against the national occupational standards. They typically require that applicants have no current development or performance improvement action plans and no live formal disciplinary sanctions or proceedings, and successful transferees complete conversion training on the receiving service’s mobilising system and processes.

Your move may also be a change of home, a change of commute, or a move within a large service, such as a posting to a different station. The Grey Book says working arrangements may include a requirement to work at different locations. Treat each situation separately, because entitlement to expenses, pay and leave differs between moving employer and moving station.

Pension continuity when you move service

For most firefighters, pension continuity is the reassuring part. An LPPA member guide to FPS 2015 says that if you leave employment with one English fire and rescue authority to transfer to another where you remain a member of FPS 2015, no transfer payment is made. Your former authority provides a certificate setting out the entries in your pension accounts and details of your period of pensionable employment. This is done automatically if there is no break between your employments.

If there has been a break in pensionable service that does not exceed five years, the certificate is provided at your request, and you must give it to your new authority so that it can transfer the details to your new pension account. So it is worth keeping the certificate safe and chasing it if it does not arrive. The guide dates from 2018 with a 2021 reissue, so confirm the current process with both administrators.

Where the move is to a fire and rescue authority in Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland, the same guide says the transfer-value principles apply, rather than the certificate route. Scotland has its own pension scheme and contribution rates, and Northern Ireland and Wales have their own schemes and administrators. Read our guides to firefighter pension transfers and firefighter pension 2015 for the wider picture, and use the pension calculator to model the effect.

Money on the move: relocation costs and what the Grey Book covers

Section 3, Part E of the Grey Book says an employee who necessarily incurs approved additional expenditure in the course of their work on travel, meals, overnight accommodation or compulsory relocation shall be reimbursed, subject to receipts or other appropriate evidence, or paid a locally agreed allowance. The employer may make a cash advance beforehand in appropriate circumstances. The important word is compulsory: this describes a requirement placed on you, not a move you chose to make.

So if you apply to another service and choose to move house, you should assume that the removal and moving costs are yours unless the vacancy or offer says otherwise. Ask directly whether any relocation or removal assistance is offered, and get the answer in writing. Some employers offer support to attract experienced staff; the Grey Book does not guarantee it. Also ask about travel to training courses, residential training costs and any conversion course, which are typically employer-funded because they are required by the employer.

Build a realistic budget. Costs you may face include removal, deposits and overlapping rent or mortgage payments, conveyancing and stamp duty if you buy, travel between homes while you move, and any additional commuting costs. The mortgage borrowing calculator and firefighter mortgage guide help you check what a lender will assess, and the overtime-to-deposit tool shows how extra earnings can build savings.

Settling leave, pay and sick pay at the old service

When you leave one employer, that employer settles what you are owed. The Grey Book says the leave entitlement of an employee who leaves during the leave year is proportionate to their service in that year, that payments in lieu are made for annual leave accrued but not taken in the current leave year, and for lieu days from public holidays accrued in the previous twelve months. Leave taken in excess of your proportionate entitlement may be treated as unpaid. Ask for a final calculation in writing.

You start a new leave year position with the new employer. The Grey Book scales and long-service leave use continuous service under the scheme of conditions, so ask the new service whether your prior Grey Book service will be recognised for long-service leave, which starts after five years’ continuous service. The same question matters for family leave, where the Grey Book uses a year’s continuous local government service for enhanced maternity pay, and for the 26-week tests for paternity and adoption entitlements. Do not assume continuity; ask.

Sick pay entitlement is calculated by reference to paid absence in the preceding twelve months. If you have had paid sick leave recently, ask the new service how it will treat that history. See firefighter sick pay, firefighter annual leave and maternity and paternity leave.

• Get a written final leave and lieu-day calculation from the old service
• Ask the new service whether previous Grey Book service counts for long-service leave and family leave tests
• Tell the new service about any recent paid sickness so the sick pay calculation is right
• Check the payslips for both employers around the changeover for tax code issues

Pay point, duty system and the new payslip

Pay for a role is national, but the point on the scale, allowances and duty system depend on the new employer’s decision. The Grey Book says pay entitlement is determined by role, the stage (training, development or competent) and, for roles above Crew Manager, the A or B job-size category. If you are a competent firefighter who transfers, the vacancy should say whether you are appointed at competent and whether you must complete conversion training first; get your pay point in writing. The current competent rate is £40,358 and the development rate £31,539 (from July 2026).

Compare the extras. CPD payments, retainers, local allowances and flexible duty supplements differ, and a service with a slightly lower base package may pay more through extras, or vice versa. Check the CPD payments page and firefighter allowances explained, then run the take-home comparison in the pay calculator. The duty system can also change your cost of living and lifestyle: a day-crewing residency rule can constrain where you live. See day-crewing and LLAR duty systems.

After the move, check your first payslips carefully, because a change of employer creates opportunities for tax code errors and missed elements. Use the payslip checker and read firefighter payslip explained.

Timing the move: notice, start dates and gaps

The safest move has no gap. Line up the start date with the end of your notice period so that pay and pension service are continuous, because a break has consequences: the certificate route for pension is automatic only when there is no break, and a gap can mean lost pay. Check the notice period in your contract, and remember that a new service may want a start date tied to a training course or recruit intake.

If a gap is unavoidable, plan for it. Use accrued leave, arrange savings and check whether any break in pensionable service affects benefits. Ask your old service whether it can agree an early release, and your new service whether the start date is flexible. Do not resign until you have an unconditional written offer, since checks such as references, medical assessment and fitness may still be outstanding.

Where you are moving with a family, consider school terms, partner employment and housing. Some people commute or stay in temporary accommodation for an initial period. Our guide to leaving the fire service covers resignation, notice and final pay in detail, and the recruitment timeline planner can help you plan the stages.

A moving checklist

Use this checklist to keep pay, pension and practical details in order. It assumes a move between English services, and you should adjust it if you are crossing a national boundary.

1. Confirm eligibility and the process with the receiving service, including any conversion training and probation.
2. Get the offer, pay point, duty system and start date in writing before resigning.
3. Ask the new service whether relocation or removal help is available, and get the answer in writing.
4. Ask your current pension administrator for a certificate of your pension accounts and pensionable service, and confirm the new authority has received it.
5. Request a written final pay and leave calculation from your old service, and check it.
6. Ask the new service how previous Grey Book service will count for long-service leave and family leave tests.
7. Budget for overlap and moving costs, and check mortgage or tenancy implications.
8. Check your first payslips at the new service, including tax code, pension deductions and any allowances.