What happens to your pension when you die
If you die when your pension is in payment, there may be benefits payable to your:
- spouse
- civil partner
- cohabiting partner
- dependant children
- nominated persons
- chosen charitable organisation
You may be able to get an estimated value of the benefits payable in the event of your death by using the benefit projector tool on My Pension Online.
Death grants
In some circumstances a one-off lump sum known as a death grant is payable to a nominated person(s) or charitable trust.
If you stopped paying into the LGPS on or after 1 April 2008, the death grant is 10 years annual pension, minus what has already been paid to you.
If you stopped paying into the LGPS between 1 April 1998 and 31 March 2008, the death grant is 5 years annual pension, minus what has already been paid to you.
If you would like an estimate of your death grant, contact us at [email protected] or call our helpline on 01296 383 755.
If you stopped paying into the LGPS before 1 April 1998
If you stopped paying into the LGPS before 1 April 1998, there may be a death grant payable if:
- you have less than 10 years reckonable service used in the calculation of your pension, but you have had your pension in payment for less than 5 years
- you have more than 10 years reckonable service used in the calculation of your pension
Nominate someone to receive the death grant
You can tell us who you would like to receive the death grant by making a nomination on My Pension Online or by completing an Expression of Wish form (PDF, 565KB). You can nominate more than one person, allocating a percentage to each.
In the event that you pass away, we can normally pay the death grant straight to your nominated person(s) or charity without waiting for probate.
If you do not make a nomination, we may have to pay your death grant to your estate. In this case, it may be subject to inheritance tax. We advise you to consult a solicitor if you are unsure of what to do.
In some cases, we may not be able to pay the death grant to the nominated person(s) or charity. This could be because:
- the nominated person(s) has died
- the chosen charity is now defunct
- the nominated person is no longer your spouse/partner/civil partner/cohabiting partner
- the Pensions Administration Manager considers that it wouldn't be reasonable to pay the death grant to the nominated person or charity due to the particular circumstance
Lump Sum & Death Benefit Lump Sum Allowance
The Government limits the total amount of tax-free lump sums and death benefit lump sums that can be paid in respect of someone's pension benefits to £1,073,100.
This is known as the Lump Sum and Death Benefit Allowance (LSDBA). When a member dies, the person dealing with their financial affairs is responsible for checking that the member has not exceeded the LSDBA.
If exceeded, they will need to report this to HMRC and pay the tax charge due.
For more information see tax controls on pensions - Lump Sum and Death Benefit Allowance.
Survivor pensions
In addition to the death grant, there may be annual pensions payable for a qualifying spouse, civil partner, cohabiting partner and children.
If you have more than one LGPS account (active, deferred or pensioner), held either at Buckinghamshire or another LGPS fund, survivor’s pensions are payable for each.
You can tell us about anyone that may be entitled to a survivor’s pension via My Pension Online. We will ask for evidence and relevant documents before paying out any survivor’s pension.
Click on the sections below to see who can receive a survivor's pension, eligibility criteria and how the survivor’s pension is calculated.
If you wish for a spouse or civil partner to receive a survivor's pension, evidence of their relationship to you must be provided evidence of their relationship to you.
We will request a copy of the applicable marriage or civil partnership certificate as well as date of birth verification for the survivor before paying any pension benefits.
How we calculate the survivor's pension
If you die after receiving your pension, your spouse or civil partner will receive a percentage of your pension. The amount they will receive is calculated based on your total LGPS membership.
You can get an estimate of any amount due on My Pension Online.
If you married or formed a civil partnership after leaving the Scheme
If you married or formed a civil partnership after you stopped paying in, some membership won’t be used in the calculation of survivor’s pension benefits.
Benefits are calculated using your membership after 5 April 1978, plus any additional membership you were entitled to under the 1995 Regulations (if you left active membership before 1 April 1998), or the 1997 Regulations (if you left active membership after 31 March 1998).
There are some exceptions to the general rules. Total membership will be used to calculate benefits in the following scenarios:
- if you were active after 31 March 1972 and left active membership before 1 April 1998, were in an opposite‑sex marriage during that period, subsequently divorced, and then entered into an opposite‑sex civil partnership or marriage with the same person after you had left active membership
- if you were in a same sex civil partnership or marriage, left active membership between 1 April 2008 and 31 March 2014, and died during that period
- if you were in a same‑sex civil partnership, left active membership between 1 April 2008 and 31 March 2014, died after that period, and an election was made under regulation 17(15) of the 2014 Transitional Regulations
If you stopped paying into the LGPS between 1 April 2008 and 31 March 2014, you would have needed to make an election before 1 April 2015 to have any membership built up before 5 April 1988 used in the calculation of your survivor’s pension.
If you paid into the LGPS after 1 April 2008, an eligible cohabiting partner is entitled to receive the survivor’s pension.
Eligibility
To be eligible, your partner would need to meet some important criteria. For a period of least two years before you die:
- you must both have been free to marry or enter into a civil partnership
- you must have lived together as if married or in a civil partnership
- you or your partner must not have lived with anyone else as if married or in a civil partnership
- you must have been financially dependent on each other, or your partner was financially dependent on you
Documentation required
We will request evidence to prove that these criteria apply. This evidence could consist of things such as joint bank account statements, utility bills, mortgage, lease or tenancy agreements.
However, it’s important to understand that we don’t have an exact list of documents we require, only that whatever is presented is enough to meet the criteria. It is up to your partner to arrange and supply this evidence. Once we have this, we will decide if we need further evidence or if the criteria are met.
How we calculate the survivor’s pension
Membership after 5 April 1988 will be used in the calculation of a cohabiting partner’s pension, unless you made an election to pay additional contributions before 1 April 2014, to ensure earlier membership was included.
You can get an estimate of any amount due on My Pension Online.
Eligibility
There are pensions payable to children who are either:
- aged under 18
- aged between 18 and 23 and in full time education, or
- suffering from a mental or physical impairment that stops them working at least 30 hours a week for a period of at least 1 year
Children eligible to receive a pension are:
- a natural child, including those born within 12 months of your death
- an adopted child, born before your death
- a stepchild or a child dependent on you at the date of your death and accepted by you as a member of the family (excluding sponsored children through a registered charity)
Documentation required
We will request evidence that children between 18 and 23 are in full time education. If the child’s application is based on the criteria for physical or mental impairment, we will also require evidence.
We will also need evidence to prove the child’s relationship to you and their dependence on you at the date of death. There are no set criteria for what this evidence must be. This evidence will need to be supplied by the child’s guardian or surviving parent. We will be unable to award a child’s pension where the evidence is insufficient.
How we calculate the child’s pension
The amount a child receives depends on how many eligible children you have and if a surviving partner’s pension is also being paid.
If there is no surviving partner’s pension being paid, a child’s pension is worked out based on 1/240th of your pensionable pay. For two or more children, it is based on 1/120th of your pensionable pay.
If there is a surviving partner’s pension being paid, one child’s pension is worked out based on1/320th of your pensionable pay. For two or more children, it is based on 1/160th of your pensionable pay.
If you paid extra into your pension
Some extra pension payments will not count towards the calculation of survivor’s pensions.
Extra contributions to your pension will not count towards a survivor’s pension if they were:
- Additional Pension Contributions (APC)
- Shared Cost Additional Pension Contributions (SCAPC)
- Additional Regular Contributions (ARC)
Any membership purchased through LGPS added years (before 1 April 2008) will be included in the calculation of children’s pensions but will only be included for a surviving partner’s pension if you were married, cohabiting or in a civil partnership with them while you were paying in.
Guaranteed Minimum Pension (GMP) protection
If you have Guaranteed Minimum Pension protection, a surviving spouse or civil partner is entitled to receive this protection in the calculation of a surviving partner’s pension. Widowers and civil partners will only receive GMP protection in the calculation of pension benefits built up between 6 April 1988 and 5 April 1997.
Trivially commuting a survivor’s or dependant’s pension
Trivial commutation can be done if the survivor’s pension is small enough to be fully extinguished by a single lump‑sum payment. This option only applies to the survivor’s pension received from us and any payment made is at our discretion using factors from the Government Actuary’s Department.
We can supply an estimate upon request. Find out how to Take your pension as a lump sum.
Contact us about your pension
If you have any questions, you can contact us about your pension.