If you get divorced or your civil partnership is dissolved and your ex-spouse or civil partner has pension benefits with Greater Manchester Pension Fund (GMPF), the court could award you a share of those benefits.
For more information about how a pension can be split as part of a divorce visit the ‘Get a quote for divorce purposes’ page.
What is a pension credit?
When the court awards a pension sharing order you will have the choice of accepting it as either a pension credit with GMPF or transferring your share to another pension scheme.
We will inform you of the amount of pension that would be paid to you if you took a pension credit, and the cash equivalent value of your share should you wish to transfer it to another pension scheme.
If you are awarded a pension credit you can still choose to transfer it to another pension scheme at a later date, however, you are not allowed to transfer if you are within 12 months of your normal pension age.
When can I take a pension credit?
Your pension credit benefit is payable, without a reduction, from your normal pension age. You can take the pension credit earlier, from age 55, but it will be reduced for early payment.
Your pension credit benefits are separate from those of your ex-spouse or civil partner, so it does not relate to when their benefits are due to be paid.
If the pension sharing order took effect after 31 March 2014
If the pension sharing order took effect after 31 March 2014 and your ex-spouse or civil partner was still paying in to their pension after 31 March 2014, your normal pension age will be linked to your State Pension age. You can check your State Pension age on the gov.uk website.
You can take your pension credit later than your normal pension age, but you must take your pension credit by age 75. If you delay payment, the pension credit will be increased.
You may have the option of swapping part of your pension for a cash lump sum. However, if your ex-spouse or civil partner has taken payment of their pension before the pension sharing order took effect and they’ve swapped part of it for a lump sum, then this will not be possible.
If the pension sharing order took effect before 1 April 2014
If the pension sharing order took effect before 1 April 2014 or your ex-spouse or civil partner left the LGPS before 1 April 2014, your normal pension age is 65. You must take your pension credit by age 65.
You will not automatically be able to swap pension for a lump sum when you take your pension credit. This may be possible if your ex-spouse or civil partner left the LGPS before 1 April 2008 and did not receive a lump sum on the transfer date.
If you suffer from serious ill health your pension credit can be paid from any age as a lump sum equal to five years of pension payments. Serious ill health means that you have less than one year to live. If you wish to claim your pension credit on the grounds of serious ill health, please contact our Customer Services team. As part of the process, an independent doctor will need to provide us with an opinion on your health.
Will my pension credit increase?
We adjust pension benefits in April each year to reflect the cost of living. The amount of the adjustment is normally based on the September to September change in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) and applies to your benefits from the following April.
We will pay your pension to you for life.
Will you pay death benefits when I die?
We will pay a death grant of three year’s pension if you die before we have paid the pension credit to you.
If you die within five years of us paying the pension credit to you, we will pay the balance of five years of pension payments as a lump sum death grant. We will adjust this figure if you swapped pension for lump sum when you took your pension credit.
You can update your lump sum death grant expression of wish details in your My Pension account.
We will not pay a partner’s pension if you remarry and die before your new spouse or civil partner, nor will we pay any children’s pensions when you die. Children’s pensions remain ‘attached’ to your ex-spouse’s or ex-civil partner’s benefits.
Is my pension credit affected if I get remarried?
No. Your pension will not be affected if you remarry or enter into a new civil partnership.
Also, if your ex-spouse’s or civil partner’s marital status changes, this will not affect your pension credit.
Your pension credit could be subject to a pension sharing order if a future marriage or civil partnership ends in divorce or dissolution.