Transfer between fire services: pay, pension and process

How transfers work

Every UK fire and rescue service recruits independently, so a transfer is an application, not a right. Some services run transferee campaigns for competent wholetime firefighters, and these are commonly advertised on the NFCC jobs site. An NFCC-listed advert from Tyne & Wear Fire and Rescue Service, for example, describes an interservice transfer process for competent wholetime firefighters only, while others from Shropshire and Royal Berkshire describe similar processes. The receiving service decides what it recognises and what further development it requires.

Check whether a campaign accepts transferees at all. A general firefighter recruitment campaign may not, and a transferee process may be limited to a role such as competent wholetime firefighter. If no campaign is open, watch the services you are interested in and register for alerts. Our recruitment timeline planner helps you plan around opening dates, and our guide to moving between services and relocating covers the practical side of a move.

What transferee adverts usually require

Published transferee adverts follow a pattern. Applicants must be deemed competent firefighters against relevant role maps and national occupational standards, and provide evidence such as copies of training records requested from the current service. The process typically consists of online registration and eligibility checks, an online assessment, ability tests, an interview and a conversion course. Some adverts say candidates must have no current development or performance improvement plans and no live formal disciplinary sanctions or investigations.

Other requirements can include driving, fitness, recent operational experience and role-specific qualifications, depending on the service. Requirements change between campaigns, so read the current advert and pack rather than relying on an old post. If you are unsure whether your training records will be accepted, ask the receiving service’s recruitment team before you invest time.

Pay when you transfer

Pay follows the national scale in England and the services that use the NJC arrangements. From 1 July 2026 a competent firefighter is on £40,358 and a development firefighter on £31,539 (NJC/2/26). Some transferee adverts say the salary is in line with national pay scales at the time of advert, and earlier adverts quoted a figure that has since been superseded by the 2026 award, so always use the current rate.

The critical question is which point you will be placed on. A transferee who is competent should expect the competent point, but a service may appoint at development during a conversion or probation period, so ask what pay applies while you complete it. Get the pay point, start date, duty system and any additions in writing. Also ask about local additions such as CPD, since they are set locally; our allowances guide explains them and our CPD payments page shows how to find yours.

Pension: moving within England

A member guide to FPS 2015 explains that if you leave one English fire and rescue authority to join another and 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 your period of pensionable employment. This is done automatically if there is no break between your employments, and if there has been a break of not more than five years the certificate is provided on request and you must give it to your new authority so they can transfer the details.

The same guide says deferred members who return to scheme membership within five years of leaving can have their active account re-established as if they had remained in pensionable service during the break but received no pensionable pay for that period. The details depend on the regulations and your record, so ask both administrators to confirm in writing that your service and accounts have been carried over correctly. See our FPS 2015 guide and the pension transfers guide.

Moving between England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland

The UK has separate firefighter pension schemes for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, with their own regulations, administrators and contribution rates. The member guide says that where a member leaves employment and joins an authority in Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland, the ordinary transfer principles apply instead of the English certificate arrangements, meaning a transfer of pension rights rather than a straight continuation. Ask both administrators what is available and whether a transfer or a deferred pension makes more sense.

Tax and contributions differ too. In 2026/27 the English FPS 2015 bands run from 11.09% to 17.09%, while Scotland’s run from 11.73% to 15.23%, and Scotland has its own income tax bands. Using the same £40,358 basic pay in both, a member in England would take home about £28,513 and one in Scotland about £28,163 because of the higher contribution (13.63% versus 12.59%) and Scottish tax bands. Pay itself may differ between nations, so treat this as an illustration of the deductions only.

Compare the terms line by line

Do not compare basic salary alone. Duty system, leave, location, additional payments, overtime access, probation and development requirements can outweigh a small salary difference, and a move can add commuting costs or relocation. Ask for the terms for each service and record them side by side, including the transfer’s effect on continuous service for things such as sick pay or long-service leave, which HR can confirm for your circumstances.

Also consider career progression. Promotion processes are service-led, so moving may reset local seniority or eligibility for a process. Ask how the receiving service handles promotion for transferees and whether any development period applies. If you plan a house move alongside the transfer, use the mortgage borrowing calculator to understand your borrowing before you commit.

Step-by-step: preparing a transfer application

Preparation pays off because transferee campaigns can be short and competitive. The steps below help you organise your evidence and avoid delays.

1. Watch the NFCC jobs site and target services for transferee campaigns and register for alerts.
2. Read the advert for eligibility, competence evidence and any conditions on performance or discipline.
3. Request copies of your training records and qualifications from your current service.
4. Prepare for the assessment, ability tests and interview.
5. Check your fitness and medical position against the receiving service’s standards.
6. Ask about the pay point, duty system and conversion course in writing before accepting.
7. Ask both pension administrators how your FPS 2015 record will carry over.
8. Plan your notice period and a clean handover of records.

Handover, notice and a clean record

Keep service dates, pension membership, qualifications, medical clearances and training history in one place. Ask your current service about notice requirements and outstanding leave, and give the receiving service the date you can start. If you are on a temporary promotion or acting-up arrangement, confirm how it ends before you leave, as it can affect your final pay and your pension record.

After the move, check the first payslips against your offer: point, additions, pension deductions and tax code. Our payslip checker helps you sense-check gross to net. If a record is missing or wrong, raise it early with both administrators, and keep the correspondence.

On-call, control and other transfer routes

Transfers are not limited to wholetime firefighters. On-call staff can move between services if the receiving service recruits on-call transferees, control room staff can apply to control transfer vacancies (Bedfordshire, for example, has advertised a firefighter control transfer role on the NFCC site), and managers can apply for roles at their rank when advertised. Each route has its own eligibility and pay, so read the advert.

Moving from on-call to wholetime, or the reverse, is a change of contract rather than a transfer of the same terms. Ask how service, competence and pay points will be treated. Our wholetime versus on-call guide and on-call pay guide explain the differences, and the payslip checker helps confirm your pay after the move.

Costs, relocation and timing

A transfer can involve costs that are not in the advert: commuting, relocation, temporary accommodation, a period on lower pay during conversion and overlapping housing costs. Ask whether the receiving service offers any relocation support, and check whether you would need to repay anything if you leave your current service, such as training costs or a bond, under your contract.

Also plan the timing. Notice periods, leave you have accrued and a start date that matches the conversion course can all affect your income. If you are moving home, consider mortgage lenders’ views on a job change and probation, and use our mortgage borrowing calculator to test your borrowing before you commit. The Career Suite can help you plan the move alongside other career decisions.

Questions to ask the receiving service before you accept

Before you accept an offer, ask what pay point you will be on from day one and during the conversion course, what the duty system and rota are, how long probation lasts, what additions apply (such as CPD) and whether you would be eligible for overtime or additional shifts. Also ask about station allocation, leave rules and public-holiday arrangements, and whether previous service counts for any local entitlements.

Ask about pension administration too: which administrator holds your record, what forms are needed and how long the update takes. Get answers in writing and compare them with your current terms. A small salary difference can be outweighed by a better pattern or a shorter commute, so weigh the whole package before you hand in notice.