Can a police pension be forfeited or taken away?

Police pension forfeiture is tightly defined: the 2015 regulations tie it to a conviction for a "relevant offence", or to money the officer owes.

Can a police pension be taken away? For members of a police force in England and Wales, the Police Pensions Regulations 2015 say yes, but only in set circumstances, and there is a right of appeal. This page sets out those circumstances in the regulations' own words. A conviction or a case in progress is a matter for a solicitor. Separately, serving and retired officers mapping out later-life income can reach an FCA-authorised adviser by returning the form on this page; police members pay nothing for that call.

When can a police pension be forfeited?

Regulation 211 of the 2015 regulations covers offences by the member. It says: "If a member is convicted of a relevant offence, the pension supervising authority may, to the extent the pension supervising authority considers appropriate, require the scheme manager to withhold benefits payable under this scheme to or in respect of the member." So a conviction is the trigger, and "may" and "to the extent" mean the authority has a choice about how much to withhold.

There are two kinds of relevant offence. The first is one or more offences under the Official Secrets Acts 1911 to 1989, or certain offences under the National Security Act 2023, where the member has been sentenced on the same occasion to at least 10 years in prison, or to two or more consecutive terms adding up to at least 10 years. The second is an offence committed in connection with the member's service in a police force where the Home Secretary has issued a forfeiture certificate.

The Home Secretary's forfeiture certificate

The regulation defines the certificate as one given by the Secretary of State for the Home Department "stating that the Secretary of State for the Home Department considers that the offence" either "has been gravely injurious to the interests of the State" or "is liable to lead to serious loss of confidence in service by members of police forces in England and Wales". No certificate, no forfeiture on this second route, however serious the conviction.

Who decides: the pension supervising authority

The decision is not made by the scheme manager. Regulation 210 names the "pension supervising authority" for each kind of force, and the scheme manager must then act on its requirement. Among the entries in the regulation's table:

• for "A member of a police force maintained under section 2 of PA 1996", a police and crime commissioner;
• for the Metropolitan Police, the Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime;
• for the City of London Police, the Common Council;
• for officers on service such as inspectors of constabulary or specified National Crime Agency officers, the Secretary of State.

Regulation 215 requires the authority to notify the person of its proposal in writing before it asks the scheme manager to withhold anything.

How much can be withheld, and what is protected

For an offence under the second route, the regulation says the scheme manager "may only withhold that part of a person's pension that exceeds any guaranteed minimum" the person is entitled to, whether as the earner's guaranteed minimum or as a minimum pension for a surviving spouse or civil partner.

Forfeiture is not necessarily final. The regulation lets the authority, as far as it thinks fit, restore forfeited pension to the member or apply it for the benefit of an eligible child or surviving adult of the member. So withheld money can reach a partner or child, if the authority decides so.

If a beneficiary kills the member

Regulation 212 is a separate rule about survivors. If a surviving adult or eligible child is convicted of murder or manslaughter of the member, or any other offence of which the member's unlawful killing is an element, the authority may require their benefits to be withheld. If all of a beneficiary's benefits are withheld, the death benefit rules apply as if that beneficiary had died before the member. For how death benefits normally work, see what happens to a police pension on death.

Police pension garnishment: money owed and set-off

Forfeiture can also follow money, with no conviction needed. Under regulation 213 the authority may require benefits to be withheld where a member "owes a relevant monetary obligation or has caused a relevant monetary loss". A relevant obligation is one incurred to the Crown or the employer, after becoming an active member, arising out of the member's "criminal, negligent or fraudulent act or omission" connected with police service. A relevant loss is one caused to the pension scheme by the member's criminal, negligent or fraudulent act or omission.

There are limits. The scheme manager may not withhold more than the lesser of the amount owed and the value of the member's benefits, and may only act if there is no dispute about the amount or it is enforceable under a court order or an arbitrator's award (in Scotland, an arbiter appointed by the sheriff). Regulation 214 adds a set-off power for debts to the Crown or employer arising from police service, for debts to the scheme arising from a criminal, negligent or fraudulent act, and for a payment made to the member in error by the scheme manager. Again the set-off is capped at the lesser of the debt and the value of the member's entitlement, and under both regulations only the part of the pension above any guaranteed minimum can be withheld or set off.

If you are worried about a debt connected with your service, your force's pension administrator or a solicitor can say whether these rules apply.

Challenging a forfeiture: notice and appeal

Where benefits are withheld for a monetary obligation or set off, regulation 215 requires the scheme manager to give the member a certificate showing the amount withheld or set off and the effect on the member's benefits under the scheme.

On appeal rights, regulation 216 says that the member, or someone claiming a benefit in respect of the member, may appeal a proposal to withhold benefits to the Crown Court. The Crown Court may "confirm or reject the proposal" or "amend the proposal so as to reduce the extent to which the benefits are withheld", and the scheme manager must comply with whatever order the court makes. For forces other than a home police force, regulation 217 sends the appeal to the Secretary of State instead.

Regulation 209 limits appeals against anything done under a power the regulations expressly say is discretionary. Whether that limit applies to a particular decision is a question for a solicitor.

Older schemes and Scotland

The 2015 regulations apply to "members of a police force in England and Wales". Officers in the 1987 and 2006 schemes have their own forfeiture rules. Regulation K5 of the 1987 regulations lets the police authority forfeit a pension "in whole or in part and permanently or temporarily" after a conviction for treason, or for Official Secrets Acts offences with at least 10 years' imprisonment, or for an offence connected with police service that the Secretary of State has certified. Regulation 55 of the 2006 regulations is worded in much the same way. Which scheme your service sits in is explained in how the police schemes differ.

Scotland has its own scheme. Regulation 201 of the Police Pension Scheme (Scotland) Regulations 2015 follows the English pattern, but the forfeiture certificate is given by the Scottish Ministers, and regulation 206 sends the appeal to the sheriff. For more on the Scottish scheme see how the Scottish police pension differs. Northern Ireland has a separate police pension scheme, which this page does not cover.

Forfeiture of a police pension: what else readers want to know

Can police lose their pension if they are sacked?

The forfeiture rules in the 2015 regulations speak of a conviction for a relevant offence, or of money owed. What a dismissal does to your accrued pension is a question for the force's pension administrator.

Is a spouse's or child's pension affected if the officer's pension is forfeited?

It can be, since the regulation covers benefits "to or in respect of the member". The authority also has a power to apply forfeited sums for a surviving adult or eligible child.

Who can tell me if my police pension is at risk?

Start with your force's pension administrator, or a solicitor if a case against you is under way. Free guidance on pensions in general comes from MoneyHelper.

Pension questions reaching past forfeiture, such as when to draw benefits or how they sit beside savings, are ones an FCA-authorised adviser takes on free; officers sending the form on this page hear back by phone.