A guide to the Northern Ireland Teachers’ Pension Scheme

If you’re a teacher in Northern Ireland, you’re automatically enrolled in the Northern Ireland Teachers’ Pension Scheme (NITPS).

The NITPS is a defined benefit pension. This means the amount it will pay you in retirement is based on your salary and length of service. 

If you joined the NITPS after April 2015, you’ll have a career average pension scheme. This means your retirement income is calculated using 1/57th of your pensionable earnings for each year you’re a member of the scheme.  

Example: If your pensionable earnings were £28,500 over one year, you would typically earn a pension that pays out £500 a year (£28,500 divided by 57). 

Your final pension amount is then calculated by adding up the pension benefits you’ve earned for each year you’re a member of the scheme. An extra amount is then added for inflation, so its value shouldn’t decrease over time. 

The calculations assume you take your pension at the scheme’s normal pension age, which is age 65 or your State Pension ageOpens in a new window if this is later. You can also choose to give up some of the guaranteed regular income from your pension and take up to 25% as a tax-free lump sum.    

If you joined the NITPS before April 2015, your retirement income will include an amount built up in the final salary scheme. To estimate how much this is, you can use the Department of Education’s calculatorOpens in a new window

You can claim the State Pension when you reach your State Pension ageOpens in a new window It doesn’t matter if you have other pensions.

How much State Pension you qualify for depends on your National Insurance record. For more information, see our guide State Pension: how it works.  

You’ll pay a percentage of your wages into your STPS each month, depending on your annual salary. Since 1 April 2025, the contribution rates are:

If you’d like to earn a higher pension, you can arrange to pay in extra.

The earliest age you can take money from the NITPS is usually 55 (57 from 6 April 2028), unless you need to retire early due to poor health. But you might get less if you take it before your normal pension age (NPA).

Your NPA depends on the type of NITPS you have. If you have built up benefits in more than one scheme, you might get certain amounts at different ages.

If you stop teaching, you’ll become a deferred member of the NITPS. This means you won’t lose the benefits you’ve already earned, but you’ll get a lower amount added for inflation each year than for active members. 

If you return to teaching within five years, you’ll typically continue building up benefits in the same scheme you left.

If you return to teaching after a five-year break, you’ll usually be moved to the latest version of the scheme – currently the career average scheme. 

For more information, you can download the Department for Education’s service breaks factsheetOpens in a new window

When you die, the NITPS will usually pay a lump sum death grant to your partner or anyone listed on your nomination form. 

If you were a member for over two years, the NITPS should also pay a regular payment to your family.  

How much your beneficiaries would get and for how long depends on the scheme you’re in and if you are an active member, deferred member or receiving your pension when you die. 

For more information, see the Department for Education’s bereavement factsheetOpens in a new window