Date: Thursday August 29, 2019 at 3:49pm
RETIREMENT
Leaving the Services with
an Armed Forces pension is pretty straightforward. From about two years
out, start thinking about your options and planning for the choices you’ll need
to make to stay MoneyFit. Moving to Civvy Street is a big step.
Your
retirement pension depends on which Armed Forces Pension Scheme you're in.
Get a pension forecast
You can
use the Armed Forces Pension
calculator to
get a pension forecast. Alternatively you can ask for a free, written forecast
of your pension once a year from the Veterans UK (formerly
SPVA).
The Forces Pension
Society can
also give you information and guidance on your pension entitlements. You will
need to pay a small membership fee, but their advice is free.
The Armed
Forces Pension Schemes are defined benefit schemes. This means that your
pension depends on your length of service and your final rank (AFPS 1975) or
final salary (AFPS 2005). AFPS 2015 is a career
average scheme.
Life after the Armed Forces
Your financial situation will
almost certainly change when you retire from the Armed Forces. If you have your
own home, your mortgage might be paid off or you might use some of your pension
lump sum to pay it off.
If you
don't have your own home, you'll probably need to think about where you'll
live, you can see our information in Buying
a property or Renting
a property at https://www.moneyforce.org.uk/. You may be able to take advantage
of the temporary housing at the Services
Cotswold Centre.
Your
spending is likely to change now that you have more time on your hands or you
start a new career. It’s a good time to revisit your budget and to get your
finances ready for your new life – use our Budget
planner (https://www.moneyforce.org.uk/Tools/Budget-Planner)
The Royal
British Legion and
the many Service charities can help you as you start your new life, whether
you’re going to take it easy or embark on a new career. Take a look at the
Legion's Civvy
Street website for
masses of information about changing career.
Resettlement entitlements
Having
completed over 16 years of service you will be entitled to the maximum number
of days of Graduated Resettlement Time (35 days), the Full Resettlement
Package, an Individual Resettlement Training Grant of £534 and up to seven
travel warrants for attendance at resettlement activities.
A
comprehensive programme
of briefings is
carried out all over the country (and overseas) each year by the Forces Pension
Society. Take a look at their website for the current programme, but
always check with your local resettlement organisation in case there have
been changes.