The National Health Service Pension Schemes (Remediable Service) (Scotland) Regulations 2023

Immediate choice election for 2015 scheme benefits: pensioner and deceased members

9.—(1) A person mentioned in paragraph (2) may make an election for the benefits paid to or in respect of a remedy member with regard to that member’s remediable service to be determined as if the service to which those benefits relate were pensionable service for the purposes of the 2015 Regulations (“an immediate choice election”).

(2) That person is—

(a) a pensioner remedy member, or

(b) a designated person (see regulation 7 where)—

(i) the remedy member died on or before 30 September 2023 and was not at the time of their death entitled to a retirement pension in respect of their remediable service;

(ii) the remedy member died on or before that date and was at the time of their death entitled to a retirement pension in respect of their remediable service; or

(iii) the pensioner remedy member is, in the opinion of the scheme manager, by reason of illness, mental disorder or otherwise unable to look after their own affairs.

(3) For the purposes of this regulation, an immediate choice election must—

(a) contain such information as the scheme manager requires;

(b) be made by the pensioner remedy member or designated person in writing in such form as the scheme manager determines; and

(c) be received by the scheme manager before the end of the immediate choice election period.

(4) Where the scheme manager accepts an immediate choice election made by a pensioner remedy member or designated person in accordance with this regulation or treats such an election as having been made in accordance with paragraph (5) that election is—

(a) treated as having effect—

(i) immediately before the member became a pensioner remedy member in respect of the member’s remediable service, or

(ii) immediately before the remedy member’s death if the member died before becoming a pensioner remedy member; and

(b) irrevocable.

(5) From the date on which the election is treated as having effect, the benefits due in respect of the remedy member’s remediable service, in place of the benefits being paid for that service, are such benefits as the scheme manager determines must be paid to or in respect of that member, after having regard to all the circumstances of the case and treating that service as if for all purposes it were pensionable service in the 2015 scheme.

(6) The scheme manager may treat an immediate choice election as having been made under this regulation immediately before the end of the immediate choice election period if paragraph (7) applies.

(7) This paragraph applies if the scheme manager—

(a) does not receive an immediate choice election before the end of the immediate choice election period, and

(b) determines, after having regard to all the circumstances of the case and the advice of the scheme actuary, that it would be more beneficial if the benefits to be paid to or in respect of the remedy member’s remediable service are determined under the 2015 Regulations.