Serving in the British Army earns you a publicly funded pension, paid for life once you reach the relevant pension age or qualify for an immediate income on leaving. It is one of the most valuable parts of your service package, yet many veterans never check what they are owed or when it becomes payable.
Understanding your pension matters because the figures can be substantial, the rules change depending on when you served, and small decisions like commutation or transferring out can cost thousands if you get them wrong. It also affects your family, your tax position and your retirement planning. This guide explains the various Armed Forces Pension Scheme (AFPS) and what you are entitled to.
Army pensions are provided through the AFPS, with benefits based on your service length, salary and pension scheme. Unlike a workplace pension, you do not pay in. The AFPS is non-contributory and funded by the government, so every day of paid service builds your retirement income at no cost to you.
There is not one Army pension but three: AFPS 75, AFPS 05 and AFPS 15. Schemes are periodically updated to reflect public sector reforms and modern career patterns. The one that applies to you depends on when you served, and many veterans hold benefits in more than one scheme as a result.
All three are defined benefit schemes, meaning your pension is a guaranteed income for life worked out by a formula. The difference is how that figure is calculated. AFPS 75 and AFPS 05 are final salary schemes, based on your rank and pay when you leave. AFPS 15, the current scheme, is a “career average” pension (technically known as Career Average Revalued Earnings, or CARE). It takes a slice of your earnings from every year you serve, adds them together and adjusts the total yearly sum to keep up with inflation.
Service length and retirement age also shape what you receive. Two years is the minimum needed to qualify for most AFPS benefits, but the longer you serve, the larger both your pension and any lump sum.
Below is a closer look at each of the three schemes regular Army veterans need to know about. Use the breakdowns to identify the scheme (or schemes) that apply to your service.
AFPS 75 is the oldest of the three schemes and applies to anyone who joined the Regular Army before 6th April 2005, when it closed to new entrants. A minimum of two years of service is needed to qualify for any pension.
Officers can leave with an immediate pension after 16 years of service from age 21. Other ranks need 22 years from age 18. If you left earlier, your pension is preserved until age 60 if your service ended up to 5th April 2006, and age 65 for service after that date.
The pension is a final salary scheme calculated using your exit rank and length of service, with an automatic tax-free lump sum equal to three times your annual pension.
AFPS 05 applies to anyone who joined the Regular Army between 6th April 2005 and 31st March 2015, when it closed to new entrants. Existing AFPS 75 members were also given a one-off offer to transfer across. As with AFPS 75, two years of service is needed to qualify.
The biggest difference is that AFPS 05 does not pay an immediate pension based on years served. While an immediate pension is payable from age 55, eligible earlier leavers aged 40 or over with at least 18 years of service receive an Early Departure Payment (EDP), made up of a tax-free lump sum and a monthly income until reaching full pension age at 65. EDP monthly payments begin by providing at least 50 per cent of your final pension and are then adjusted to 75 per cent at the age of 55. If you leave the Army without hitting these milestones, you won’t get an EDP, and your pension is preserved until age 65.
The pension itself is calculated as 1/70th of final pensionable earnings for each year of service, with an automatic tax-free lump sum of three times the annual pension. All paid service counts, with no minimum age requirement, which is another key change from AFPS 75.
AFPS 15 is the current Armed Forces Pension Scheme and the one all serving Army personnel are now part of. It opened on 1st April 2015, replacing AFPS 75 and AFPS 05. From 1st April 2022, every remaining member of the older schemes was moved across, so AFPS 15 is now the only scheme open to both regulars and reservists. Two years of service is needed to qualify.
The biggest change from previous versions is how the pension is calculated. AFPS 15 is a career average scheme rather than a final salary one, so your pension is built up year by year from your actual earnings, then revalued annually with inflation. The Normal Pension Age also rises to 60, with deferred pensions paid at State Pension Age rather than 60 or 65.
There is no automatic lump sum under AFPS 15. Instead, you can choose to give up part of your annual pension in exchange for a tax-free lump sum, known as commutation, at a rate of £12 of lump sum for every £1 of pension surrendered. Regulars who leave aged 40 or over with at least 20 years of service still receive an EDP, made up of a monthly income and a tax-free lump sum, bridging the gap to State Pension Age.
The below table highlights the key features and differences of each scheme.
| AFPS 75 | AFPS 05 | AFPS 15 | |
| Dates | Before 6th April 2005 | 6th April 2005 to 31st March 2015 | 1st April 2015 to present |
| Pension type | Final salary | Final salary | Career average |
| Retirement age | Immediate pension after 16 years (officers) or 22 years (other ranks). If leaving earlier, preserved pension at 65 (or 60 if left before April 2006). | Immediate pension if leaving at age 55. EDP from age 40 with 18 years’ service. Full pension is preserved until 65. | EDP from age 40 with 20 years’ service. Immediate pension if you serve to age 60. Otherwise, deferred until State Pension Age. |
| Lump sum | Automatic, 3x annual pension | Automatic, 3x annual pension | Optional via commutation at £12 per £1 of pension given up |
Several factors shape the size of your Army pension. The main ones are:
The table below shows illustrative AFPS 15 figures for typical Army career profiles, based on the rank and service length most people reach at their actual point of departure.
| Exit rank | Typical exit age | Years served | EDP lump sum | EDP monthly income (to State Pension Age) | Deferred annual pension (from State Pension Age) |
| Corporal | 30 | 12 | None | None | £6,000 |
| Sergeant | 40 | 22 | £29,500 | £370 | £13,100 |
| Staff Sergeant | 42 | 24 | £37,000 | £465 | £16,400 |
| Warrant Officer Class 1 | 47 | 29 | £55,100 | £694 | £24,500 |
| Captain (Direct Entry) | 32 | 10 | None | None | £8,300 |
| Major | 45 | 22 | £53,500 | £675 | £23,800 |
The most reliable way to work out what your long-term pension will look like is to use the Armed Forces Pension Calculator. This online tool is managed by the government and allows you to enter all of the individual information about your service. It then takes into account factors like accrual rates, service history and retirement dates for a projection of what you’ll be entitled to.
To use the calculator, it helps to have certain information at hand, including:
You can find the Armed Forces Pension Calculator here.
Understanding how your pension is calculated and what options are open to you is only one part of the equation. Veterans may also need to consider a range of other issues, such as how your Army pension is taxed, what benefits your family may receive and how your military pension interacts with other benefits like the State Pension.
In most cases, Army pensions are considered taxable income, with tax rates being outlined in the government’s Budget each year. The only exception is when a medical discharge occurs where the principal invaliding condition is due to service, in which case it can be tax-free.
If you’ve served in the armed forces for two or more years at the time of your death, your spouse or civil partner and any children will qualify to receive part of your pension. How much will depend on whether you’ve started to draw your pension or not.
If you die before drawing a pension, your family will be entitled to a lump sum payment. Under AFPS 15, this will be four times your final pensionable earnings if you died in service, or your deferred lump sum if you die after leaving the forces.
Eligible partners will also receive a lifetime pension equal to 62.5 per cent of the value of the pension at the time of your death under AFPS 15.
Broadly, yes. In the event of a divorce, former spouses or civil partners may be entitled to a portion of your Army pension. The exact amount will be decided during the settlement and will depend on factors like how long the marriage lasted.
Yes. Your Army pension has no impact on your State Pension. The two are entirely separate and you can claim both once you reach State Pension Age. This is currently in the process of rising from 66 to 67, with the change being phased in between April 2026 and April 2028 depending on your date of birth. The State Pension is also not means-tested, so receiving an Army pension will not reduce what you are entitled to from the state.
Is an Army pension for life?
Yes. Once your Army pension comes into payment, it is paid for life and increases each year in line with inflation. If you die, your spouse, civil partner or eligible partner may receive a pension for life as well.
Can you claim an Army pension early?
Sometimes. Under AFPS 05 and AFPS 15, deferred pensions can be claimed from age 55, but the amount is permanently reduced to reflect the longer payment period. Those who qualify for an EDP also receive an income before their full pension begins. Ill-health pensions can be paid earlier still in qualifying cases.
Do Army pensions increase every year?
Yes. Pensions in payment rise each April in line with the Consumer Prices Index from the previous September. AFPS 75 immediate pensions are an exception, as they are held flat until age 55, then uprated to reflect inflation since leaving.
Can you transfer an Army pension?
Only in limited circumstances. You can transfer the value of a deferred AFPS pension into another defined benefit scheme, but transfers to defined contribution schemes are blocked under UK law. Pensions already in payment cannot be transferred.
How do you check your Army pension?
Serving personnel receive an Annual Benefits Information Statement around their birthday and can view or request forecasts via the internal JPA system or MyPension portal. Veterans can request a forecast by downloading the official pension forecast application forms directly from GOV.UK.
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