NHS Pension Increase April 2027: 3.5% Likely, Estimate Yours

If you already draw an NHS pension, one number matters every April: the yearly increase. This guide explains what it is, how the April 2027 figure is set, what we do and do not know today, and how to estimate the extra pounds on your own pension. September CPI was 3.5%, which sets the increase once the Government confirms it.

Estimate your April 2027 rise in pounds

Enter your yearly pension and see the rise in pounds. The estimator is set to September's 3.5%, the likely figure.

What the yearly NHS pension increase is

Every year pensions in payment are reviewed by HM Treasury. This review is called the annual Pensions Increase (PI), and it protects your pension from inflation. NHSBSA's 2026 pensioner newsletter says that when you receive an increase, it starts on the first Monday after 5 April each year (6 April in 2026). The same increase applies across public service pensions: gov.uk publishes it for all of them in its Public service pensions increase: 2026 page.

NHSBSA says your pension normally increases if you are over 55, or if your pension is an ill-health pension. It also applies to adult dependants' pensions for spouses, civil or nominated partners and to children's pensions.

How the April 2027 increase will be set

The rule has two steps. The percentage follows the rise in the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) from September to September, and the Government then confirms it. For the 2026 increase, gov.uk says it is based on the September-to-September rise in CPI, and NHSBSA says the 2026 increase of 3.8% was based on the rise in CPI in the 12 months ending 30 September 2025.

For April 2027 that means the 12 months to September 2026. The ONS publishes the September 2026 figure on 21 October 2026. So the answer to "what will the NHS pension increase be in April 2027?" is: whatever September CPI turns out to be, once the Government confirms it. To work it out yourself once it is published:

• ✓ Find the September 2026 CPI annual rate on the ONS website (the 12-month rate for September 2026)
• ✓ Check the Government has confirmed it as the pensions increase, on gov.uk
• ✓ Multiply your yearly pension by that percentage, or use the estimator below
• ✓ If your pension started within the last year, take only the proportion NHS Pensions says applies

What is confirmed and what is not

Worked examples: what a rise adds to a full-year pension

Full-year amounts before tax, from the same function as the estimator.

These are illustrations of the arithmetic. They are not forecasts for April 2027.

Part-year and other exceptions

• Pension started in the last year. You receive a proportion of the increase based on how long it has been in payment (gov.uk). For 2026, NHSBSA said you may receive a lower percentage if your pension started after 21 April 2025, and no increase if it started after 21 March 2026. NHSBSA will publish the equivalent dates for 2027. The estimator's months-in-payment option approximates this, and your advice note is the authority.
• Guaranteed Minimum Pension (GMP). NHSBSA says that if you retired after 1978 and receive a State Pension, GMP rules mean you may not get the full increase on your NHS pension, with any shortfall offset by a proportional increase to your State Pension. If you reach State Pension age on or after 6 April 2016, your NHS pension includes the full increase.
• Under 55. Your pension normally increases if you are over 55 or have an ill-health pension.

Your pension if you are still working

The yearly Pensions Increase is for pensions in payment. If you are an active member of the 2015 Scheme, the career average pension you are building is revalued each year by a different measure, which NHSBSA's members' guide gives as CPI plus 1.5%, and it shows up in your Annual Benefit Statement rather than as an April increase. To see how that builds towards retirement, use the NHS Pension Calculator, and see the 2015 Scheme explained for how benefits build.

Tax and lump sums

The increase is part of your pension, so it is taxable income, taxed at your marginal rate. If you took a lump sum by giving up pension, the pension you kept is smaller and so is the increase in pounds: see the NHS Pension Lump Sum Calculator, which allows for the yearly increases on the pension given up. If you are choosing when to take your pension, the retirement age checker shows the reduction at each age.

If you are wondering about the other April 2027 pension change in the news, the Inheritance Tax rule for unused pension funds, that is a separate change: see NHS Pension and Inheritance Tax.