Commonly asked questions on retirement benefits

For Officers on Civil Service Provident Fund (CSPF) Scheme

Please refer to the CSPF Scheme Members’ Corner (Q&A for CSPF Scheme) for details.

For Pensionable Officers

Is the period of pre-retirement leave taken into account as pensionable service in computing pension benefits?

Paid leave including pre-retirement leave period will be taken into account as pensionable service in computing pension benefits. However, the total length of pensionable service shall not exceed the period of pensionable service required for attaining maximum pension, i.e. two-thirds of the highest annual pensionable emoluments enjoyed by an officer.

If civil service pay increase takes effect during the pre-retirement leave of an officer, should the revised salary be taken into account in computing his/her pension benefits?

Yes, the revised salary will be taken into account in the computation of an officer’s pension benefits. The pension will be calculated on the basis of the officer’s highest annual pensionable emoluments.

Can an officer opt to receive all pension in one go as a lump sum pension gratuity?

No, the maximum commutation rate is 25% and 50% respectively for officers retiring under the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) and New Pension Scheme (NPS) respectively.

When will a deferred pension be granted to an officer who has resigned after a completion of not less than 10 years’ qualifying service under the NPS be payable?

A deferred pension granted under the Pension Benefits Ordinance (PBO), Cap. 99, which governs the NPS, will be payable to the officer who was appointed to service under the Government on or after 1 July 1987 when he/she attains the age of 60 for civilian officer and the prescribed retirement age under the PBO (i.e. 55 or 57 depending on ranks) for disciplined services officer; whereas for an officer appointed before 1 July 1987 and had opted to join the NPS within the specified option period, the deferred pension will be payable to him/her on attaining the age of 55 for both civilian and disciplined services officer.

Will monthly pension cease to be payable after certain years to a retired officer if he has received the maximum commuted pension gratuity (25% under OPS and 50% under NPS) on retirement?

The monthly pension will cease to be payable to the pensioner when the pensioner passes away. In other words, irrespective of the number of years that the monthly pension has already been paid, monthly pension will still be payable to the pensioner so long as the pensioner is still alive.

If a retired officer is re-employed by the Government on non-civil service contract terms, will his/her pension be suspended? How about employment of pensioners by subvented organisations?

The policy of pension payment / suspension has been revised with effect from 1 September 2011. Under the current policy, pension suspension arrangement will no longer apply to pensioners who are re-employed by the Government once they have reached the retirement age prescribed under the pension legislations. However, pension suspension arrangement will continue to apply to those who are re-employed by the Government but have not yet reached the retirement age prescribed under the pension legislations. (The pension legislations provide that the normal retirement age for civil servants appointed on pensionable terms is 55 under the OPS. For the NPS, the normal retirement age for civilian officers is 60 and the prescribed retirement age for disciplined services officers is 55 or 57. Say for example, if a civilian officer who retired at age 55 under NPS is re-employed by the Government, he/she is subject to pension suspension arrangement, until he/she has reached the normal retirement age prescribed under the relevant pension legislation (i.e. the age of 60)).

Besides, pension suspension will also not apply to pensioners who take up post-retirement employment with subvented organisations.

If a retired officer passes away, can his/her spouse or legal personal representative continue to receive his/her monthly pension?

When an officer retires under the relevant pension legislation, he/she may choose to commute a certain percentage of his pension into a lump sum pension gratuity. The remaining part of the pension will be payable to the officer on a monthly basis until the officer passes away. If there is a difference between the amount of total pension benefits (including the commuted lump sum pension gratuity and the monthly pension) received by a pensioner at the time he/she passed away and the maximum commuted pension gratuity to which he/she is entitled (i.e. commutation of 25% of his/her pension under the OPS and 50% under the NPS), his/her nominated spouse* or legal personal representative will be paid such difference (death gratuity).

Example

Scenario A

Under NPS, an officer has opted 50% and received the maximum commuted pension gratuity of $1,680,000 and a monthly pension of $10,000 on retirement. The officer then passes away three months later. In this situation, no death gratuity will be payable to the nominated spouse or the legal personal representative of the officer concerned.

Scenario B

Under NPS, an officer has opted 10% (the maximum commuted pension gratuity at 50% is $1,680,000) and received the commuted pension gratuity of $336,000 and a monthly pension of $18,000 on retirement. The officer then passes away three months later. In this situation, a death gratuity of an amount $1,290,000 will be payable to the nominated spouse or the legal personal representative of the officer concerned as shown below -

Death gratuity= maximum commuted pension gratuity – pension benefits paid

= $1,680,000 – ($336,000 + $18,000 x 3)

= $1,290,000

*Officers/Pensioners are advised to complete the designated form (G.F. 594A) for nomination of spouse for death gratuity.

Separately, there are two contributory schemes, namely Widows and Orphans Pension Scheme (WOPS) and the Surviving Spouses’ and Children’s Pensions Scheme (SSCPS) operated by the Government, which provide pension benefits to the surviving spouse and/or children of a deceased civil servant who was a member of WOPS/SSCPS. WOPS is governed by the Widows and Orphans Pension Ordinance (Cap. 94) while SSCPS is governed by the Surviving Spouses’ and Children’s Pensions Ordinance (Cap. 79). The payment of a pension under WOPS/SSCPS commences upon the death of the contributor or a former contributor who has a preserved benefit in WOPS/SSCPS.

What should a pensioner do if there is/are changes of his/her personal particulars?

In general, if there is/are change(s) in personal particular(s) (e.g. marital status, address, phone number, etc.) of a pensioner, he/she should report relevant change(s) to the Treasury to facilitate update of record.