The National Health Service Superannuation Scheme (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2008

Replacement of regulation B2

4.  For regulation B2 (age limits and restrictions on membership) substitute–

“Age limits and restrictions on membership

B2.— (1) A person is not eligible to join the scheme if–

(a) that person is–

(i) under the age of 16;

(ii) over the age of 75; or

(iii) over the age of 70 on or before 31st March 2008;

(b) that person is a special class officer over the age of 65;

(c) that person is an officer in “contributory service” under the Teachers' Superannuation (Scotland) Regulations 2005(1) in any hospital vested in the Scottish Ministers;

(d) that person holds an honorary appointment and does not at the same time hold any other employment which entitles him to join the scheme;

(e) that person, on or after 1st April 2008, enters NHS employment for the first time and has not previously been a member of the scheme;

(f) that person, on or after 1st April 2008, returns to NHS employment and was entitled to a refund of contributions under regulation E9 (early leavers' entitlement to refund of contribution) when he last left employment, unless paragraph (4), but not paragraph (5), of regulation L1 (treatment of pensionable service of early leavers returning to pensionable employment) applies to that person;

(g) that person–

(i) leaves pensionable employment on, or after, 1st April 2008; and

(ii) before returning to NHS employment, exercises his right to transfer out all of his benefits in the scheme in accordance with regulation M1 (member’s right to transfer or buy-out) or M2 (exercising a right to transfer or buy-out); or

(iii) that person has been a member of the National Health Service Pension Scheme whose membership was determined by the National Health Service Pension Scheme Regulations 2008(2).

(2) In paragraph (1), “pensionable employment” includes employment that qualified the member for a benefit under a health service scheme.

(3) The Scottish Ministers may permit a person who would otherwise not be eligible to join the scheme in accordance with paragraph (1)(f) to (h) to do so if–

(a) that person’s employment is transferred to an employing authority by virtue of a transfer of undertakings or by virtue of arrangements equivalent to a transfer of undertakings (whether or not the transferring employer is in the public sector provided that person’s employment was originally transferred out of the public sector); and

(b) the employment from which the member is transferred–

(i) qualified the member for benefits under an occupational pension scheme; and

(ii) the rules of that scheme (in the opinion of the Scottish Ministers) entitle the member to receive benefits on retirement upon, or prior to, attaining the age of 60.

(4) The reference in paragraph (3)(a) to arrangements equivalent to a transfer of undertakings is to arrangements–

(a) which the Scottish Ministers consider to be equivalent to the transfer of an undertaking; and

(b) under which the parties to the arrangements have agreed that the rights of the persons whose employments are being transferred should as far as practicable be treated in the same way as they would have been under a transfer of an undertaking.

(5) For the purposes of paragraph (3)(b)(ii) a person is not to be treated as being entitled under the rules of a pension scheme to receive benefits upon, or prior to, attaining the age of 60 years, where such entitlement arises by virtue of any scheme rule making special provision–

(a) as to early retirement on the grounds of ill health, redundancy or otherwise; or

(b) for benefits to be reduced for early payment.

(6) Before permitting a person referred to in paragraph (3) to join the scheme the Scottish Ministers must take advice from the scheme actuary.”.

(1)

S.S.I. 2005/393, to which there are amendments not relevant to these Regulations.

(2)

S.I. 2008/653.