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Are you a central government employee looking to secure financial stability after your retirement but fear NPS is too risky? There is a major decision awaiting for you. On April 1, 2025, the central government rolled out a new pension scheme for its workers, called the Unified Pension Scheme or UPS which offers to provide a fixed pension to employees upon retirement. This scheme gives employees an option to drift away from the NPS or National Pension System which offered an unfixed pension amount, based on the corpus accumulated at retirement and the annuity purchased. Is UPS different from NPS?Under UPS, government employees who have completed at least 25 years of service will receive a fixed monthly pension amounting to 50% of their average basic pay during the final 12 months before retirement. However, they must have completed at least 25 years of service.Unlike NPS, where the retirement payout depended on the corpus accumulated and annuity purchased, UPS offers greater certainty for government employees.How to apply for the UPS?Eligible employees must submit Form A2 or Form A1 either online or physically to their office head or DDO. Forms are available on the Protean CRA website.The A2 form is to exercise the option for existing central government employees while A1 is for the newly recruited, who joined services on or after April 1, 2025. Applicants should retain an acknowledgement slip stamped by the nodal office as proof of submission.What is the deadline to switch to UPS?The Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) said in its frequently asked questions that existing central government employees who want to switch from NPS to the new UPS must do so within three months of its launch, that is, by 30 June 2025.“Option has to be exercised within three (03) months from April 1, 2025, or within such extended timelines, if any, allowed by the central government,” the authority said, quoted by ET. What happens if you miss the deadline?Employees who do not opt for UPS by the deadline will remain under the National Pension System. Manmeet Kaur, Partner at Karanjawala & Co, a law said, “If a central government employee fails to opt into UPS by June 30, 2025, or by any further extended date, they will continue to be governed by the provisions of the National Pension System and shall be considered to have chosen to remain under the NPS.”Will there be a second chance?Kinjal Champaneria, Partner at Solomon & Co said that though the FAQs do not explicitly provide for a second opportunity to opt for the scheme, “they do state that the timeline for availing the UPS option may be extended at the discretion of the central government. Therefore, if such an extension is granted, eligible central government employees who missed the initial window may have a second chance to opt for the UPS.“Which government employees are eligible for the scheme?The following categories can opt for UPS by the 30 June deadline:
- Current central government employees under NPS as of 1 April 2025.
- Retired employees before 31 March 2025, and have completed 10 years of service,
- Have retired under Fundamental Rules 56(j)
- Legally wedded spouses of deceased employees who retired before exercising the option for UPS.
What about the newcomers?The three-month deadline does not apply to individuals joining central government service on or after 1 April 2025. However, these recruits must exercise their UPS option within 30 days of joining, unless the government decides otherwise, Champaneria said.Can you switch back to NPS?Once exercised, the decision to opt into UPS is final and irrevocable, as confirmed in the PFRDA’s FAQs.
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