What type of pension scheme is uss

International students Continuing education Executive and professional education Courses in education. Research at Cambridge. Home CPS. Total Incapacity — benefits calculated as if retiring at NPA Ill Health — ill health enhancement of 1 year for each 5 years of completed service.

The scheme will contact you at your home address with your options. There are no forms for you to complete, just ensure that we have any change of address that applies. However, if you have pre service, some of your benefits accrued may have a normal pension age of If you want to retire before the NPA, it may be possible under the scheme's early retirement terms. There are exceptions to this, for some former final salary section members.

Modellers on the USS website will give a good indication of the benefits you would receive, these figures will include any early retirement factors that may apply.

Your pension may be reduced for early payment if you are taking it before the scheme's NPA. There are exceptions to this for some former final salary section members. In the first instance, a member should use the modellers on the USS website to look at pension benefits. We can request a full formal quote if the date you are considering to retire is within the next 12 months, however, USS will only produce two quote in a 12 month period, so please consider this if you request formal quotes.

For the first 39 weeks of maternity leave you will continue to pay contributions on the pay you receive. The University will maintain your contributions up to the full amount of your normal contributions you would have paid had you not been on maternity leave. After 39 to 52 weeks: During this period contributions will cease. You can elect to repay these contributions once you return to work. Contact the Pension Team if you require further information on this option.

Read our cookie policy to find out how to manage your cookie settings. Membership of USS has been available to eligible employees at the University of Reading since and currently there are in excess of 2, members here at Reading. Membership is offered by the University of Reading to employees in Framework Grades 6 and above or equivalent.

The Scheme is operated under a Trust and the assets are kept entirely separate from those of the University. USS is currently a defined benefit scheme but became a hybrid arrangement from 1 October This means that a member's benefits are determined by their pensionable earnings rather than being linked to a fund of money they have paid into but please see below for the position from 1 October Contribution rates to USS are currently 9.

A salary exchange scheme was introduced by the University in as this is a more efficient way of paying into the Scheme. If you are eligible for membership of USS you will be enrolled automatically from your first day of employment and if this is the case, it will be specified in your contract of employment.

For some posts mainly sessional lecturers and anyone paid on the submission of timesheets , employees are only automatically entered into Scheme membership if they meet the Government's auto-enrolment criteria.

Please see your offer and contract of employment for full information. Membership is available to anyone who has not been entered automatically - or who has previously opted out of the Scheme - see "What to do if you want to join a pension scheme" below. If you want to join a pension scheme now, contact Stephanie May, Pensions Manager, in writing by sending a letter, which has to be signed by you.

Or if sending it electronically, it has to contain the phrase "I confirm I personally submitted this notice to join a workplace pension scheme". The email address is: pensions reading. You will then be sent further information and confirmation you are being enrolled in the Scheme. Should you decide that you do not want to be a member of USS you can opt out but this cannot be done in advance of your first day of employment or, if auto-enrolled under the Government's criteria, before you have received your enrolment notice.

Information on how to opt out of Scheme membership can be found on the USS website. Full details of USS can be found on the scheme's website long with lots of helpful factsheets, information and benefit modellers. Forms for nominating beneficiaries in the event of your death or for transferring other benefits into USS can also be found here. Over the last few years there have been some reductions in the amount of tax free benefits which can be built up. For information of these limits and the recent changes along with some helpful additional resources, please visit USS tax changes.

University of Reading cookie policy We use cookies on reading. Skip to main content. Human Resources. About us. Professional and Advisory. HR Operations. People Development. Contact the Human Resources Department. Recruitment and Selection. Visitor FAQs. Relocation Assistance. Visa Loan Scheme. Visa Expenses Policy. Document checking. Selection and Appointment of Key Academic Administrative roles. The amount usually increases with inflation and is guaranteed until death. Defined Contribution Scheme In a Defined Contribution scheme , members have individual saving pots that both they and their employer pay into.

At retirement, members draw their pension savings from this fund, which consists of all the employer and employee contributions paid in over the years, plus investment returns that have been earned by investing the scheme in, for example, stocks and shares. In this kind of scheme, employees can choose whether they wish to take out all their retirement savings as a lump sum, or to opt for alternative options such as an annuity or drawdown.

An annuity is a fixed sum of money paid to someone each year, typically for the rest of his or her life.