NHS Pension

McCloud Choice: Legacy or 2015 Scheme? How to Decide

FP FrontlinePay Editorial
Updated 7 October 2026

Independent guidance — not affiliated with NHS England or DHSC

If you have NHS service between 1 April 2015 and 31 March 2022 and were in the scheme before 1 April 2012, you will be asked to choose between your old 1995 or 2008 Section benefits and 2015 Scheme benefits for those years. Our McCloud remedy guide explains the mechanism. This page is the decision framework: who has to choose and when, the few things that actually decide which is better, and how to test your own choice.

Short answer

There is no universal winner: neither the legacy sections nor the 2015 Scheme is always better. The choice covers only your 1 April 2015 to 31 March 2022 service and depends mainly on how your pay changed, when you will retire compared with each section's Normal Pension Age, whether the lump sum matters, and the accrual rate of your legacy section. If you have already claimed benefits and received a letter, NHSBSA says you have 12 months to reply and that without a reply it will pay 1995/2008 benefits, so do not ignore it. If you are still working, the choice is generally made at retirement. This is information, not advice.

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Who chooses, and when

Your situation When you choose What NHSBSA says
Already claimed your pension When NHSBSA sends you a Remediable Service Statement and decision letter. You have 12 months from the date of the letter. With no reply it revises benefits permanently to pay 1995/2008 benefits. Forecast timelines run to the end of December 2027 and the end of June 2030 depending on your group.
Still working, or deferred Generally at the point you take your pension (the deferred choice underpin). Remedy-period service is treated as legacy service until then. The Remedy Benefits Illustrator can show an estimate of how your choice is likely to affect your pension.
Joined after 31 March 2012 No choice to make. You were never in the legacy scheme, so the remedy does not apply to you.

Sources: NHSBSA remediable service statements, when you will make your remedy choice and the Remedy Benefits Illustrator. The dates are NHSBSA forecasts and can change.

The five things that decide which is better

Nobody can say which is better without your numbers, but the same five things drive the answer in every case. Use them to understand your statement.

Lever Legacy (1995 or 2008) 2015 Scheme
1. Pay history and growth Final salary: the pension follows your best recent pay, not your average over the years. Steep pay growth, such as a late promotion, helps the legacy side. Career average: each year's pay builds 1/54 and is revalued. Flat or falling pay and breaks matter less.
2. Accrual rate 1995: 1/80 of final pay per year. 2008: 1/60 of final pay per year. 1/54 of each year's pay, a higher rate than either legacy section.
3. When you retire Normal Pension Age 60 (1995) or 65 (2008). Retiring around then avoids any reduction. State Pension age, or 65 if later, so 67 or 68 for most. Retiring earlier means a bigger reduction.
4. The lump sum 1995: an automatic lump sum of three times the pension. 2008: none. None unless you swap pension for cash at £12 for every £1 a year.
5. Part-time and breaks Part-time years and breaks are counted under the legacy rules for service and final pay. Check how your statement treats them. Actual pay each year drives the pension, so part-time years build less. Check how your statement shows them.

The first three are usually the big ones. A member whose pay rose sharply, who plans to retire near their legacy Normal Pension Age, and who values the lump sum is looking at a different question from someone with flat pay who will work to State Pension age. Accrual rates are from NHSBSA's scheme descriptions and the BMA, and Normal Pension Ages from NHSBSA's applying for your pension page.

ℹOnly your statement answers it

Whether legacy or 2015 gives more depends on your own pay record, which only NHSBSA's Remediable Service Statement uses in full. We deliberately do not claim a rule such as legacy is always better. Use the five levers to read it, not to skip it.

How to test your own choice

  • ✓ Find which sections you were in: your Annual Benefit Statement shows them
  • ✓ Use NHSBSA's Remedy Benefits Illustrator for an estimate now, or wait for your personalised statement for exact figures
  • ✓ Write down for each option: the annual pension, any lump sum, and the Normal Pension Age
  • ✓ Check the reduction at your intended retirement age for each section with the retirement age checker
  • ✓ If a lump sum matters, compare the total with the lump sum calculator
  • ✓ Consider the tax angle: the McCloud choice can change past pension growth, see the Annual Allowance guide
  • ✓ If a lot of money is involved, speak to an independent financial adviser

Retirement Age Checker

Normal Pension Age and the reduction at each age, by section.

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Pension Lump Sum Calculator

Standard versus maximum lump sum and the break-even age.

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Mistakes to avoid

  • Ignoring the letter. If you have already claimed benefits, NHSBSA says no reply within 12 months means benefits are revised to 1995/2008. Make the choice deliberately.
  • Comparing only the annual pension. A lump sum, a different Normal Pension Age and different reductions can outweigh a small difference in the yearly figure.
  • Assuming legacy is always better, or that newer is. It depends on your pay history, retirement age and lump sum needs.
  • Using today's pay for a final salary comparison. The legacy side follows pay near retirement, so a future promotion or pay rise changes it.
  • Forgetting the tax effect. A different pension growth figure in past years can change an Annual Allowance position, for better or worse.

Where to get help

NHSBSA says members with complex situations can consult an independent financial adviser and apply for cost recovery through the NHS Cost Claim Back Scheme, so check its remediable service statements page for the conditions. Your union may also offer support, and how to contact NHS Pensions explains how to reach NHSBSA if your statement does not arrive or looks wrong.

NHS McCloud Remedy Explained

The mechanism, who is affected and the Remediable Service Statement.

NHS Pension Scheme 2015 Explained

How the career average scheme works.

NHS Pension 1995 Section Explained

Final salary with an automatic lump sum.

NHS Pension 2008 Section Explained

Final salary with no automatic lump sum.

NHS Retirement Age Checker

Normal Pension Age and early retirement reduction.

NHS Pension Lump Sum Calculator

Standard versus maximum lump sum.

Sources and how we checked

  • ✓ NHSBSA remediable service statements page: the 12-month reply period, the default to 1995/2008 benefits and the Cost Claim Back Scheme
  • ✓ NHSBSA when you will make your remedy choice page: forecast timelines
  • ✓ NHSBSA Remedy Benefits Illustrator knowledge base article
  • ✓ NHSBSA applying for your pension page: Normal Pension Ages by section
  • ✓ We do not state which option is better for any group, because only a personalised statement can show that
  • ✓ Independent guidance, not affiliated with NHS Pensions. Not financial advice

Frequently asked questions

Is 1995/2008 or 2015 Scheme better for my McCloud choice? +
There is no universal answer, and it can go either way. The choice only covers your service between 1 April 2015 and 31 March 2022, and it depends on how your pay changed, when you plan to retire, whether the lump sum matters to you, and the accrual rate of the section you were in. NHSBSA gives each member personalised figures in a Remediable Service Statement so the choice is made on your numbers, not on rules of thumb.
What happens if I do not reply to my McCloud choice letter? +
For members who have already claimed benefits, NHSBSA says members have 12 months from the date of their letter to tell it their decision, and that if it receives no response it will revise their benefits permanently to pay 1995/2008 Scheme benefits. Do not ignore the letter, because the default may or may not suit you.
When will I get my McCloud choice letter if I have already retired? +
NHSBSA publishes forecast timelines. It gives the end of December 2027 for members receiving 2015 Scheme benefits for some or all of the remedy period and those who retired before 1 October 2023, and the end of June 2030 for those whose pension was returned to the 1995/2008 Scheme on 1 October 2023 or who retired before moving to the 2015 Scheme. NHSBSA says these are forecasts and many members will hear sooner.
I have not retired yet. When do I make the McCloud choice? +
Under the deferred choice underpin the choice is generally made when you come to take your pension, using a statement NHSBSA provides then. Until then your remedy-period service is treated as legacy service by default. NHSBSA's Remedy Benefits Illustrator lets most affected members see an estimate of how the choice is likely to affect their pension, though it cannot give exact figures.
Does the McCloud choice affect my lump sum? +
It can, because the sections work differently. The 1995 Section pays an automatic tax-free lump sum of three times the pension, while the 2008 Section and 2015 Scheme pay none unless you swap pension for cash at £12 for every £1 a year. If a lump sum matters to you, compare the total package, not just the annual pension. Our lump sum calculator shows what each lump sum choice means.
Does the McCloud choice affect when I can retire without a reduction? +
Yes. Whichever benefits you choose for your remedy-period service take that section's Normal Pension Age and early retirement rules with them: 60 for the 1995 Section, 65 for the 2008 Section, and State Pension age (65 at least) for the 2015 Scheme. Our retirement age checker shows the reduction at each age for each section.
Can I get financial advice on my McCloud choice paid for? +
NHSBSA says members with complex situations may consult an independent financial adviser and can apply for cost recovery through the NHS Cost Claim Back Scheme. Check NHSBSA's remediable service statements page for the current conditions before you commit to paying for advice.
Does the McCloud remedy affect my Annual Allowance? +
It can. Choosing between sections for the remedy period can change the pension growth counted in past tax years, which may reopen a past Annual Allowance position. Our McCloud remedy guide and the Annual Allowance guide explain the knock-on effect, and an adviser can help if a past charge is involved.

Budget day, 28 October: what it means for your NHS Pension

We'll email you on the day with what was announced and what it means for NHS Pension members. You also get the free PDF now.

Free. Independent, not affiliated with the NHS. Every email has an unsubscribe link. See our privacy policy.