Local Government Pension Scheme in Northern Ireland

Local government workers in Northern Ireland belong to the Local Government Pension Scheme (Northern Ireland), run by the Northern Ireland Local Government Officers’ Superannuation Committee, known as NILGOSC. Since 1 April 2015 it has been a career average scheme building 1/49 of your pensionable pay each year. From April 2026 members pay between 5.5% and 10.5% of pay, depending on earnings.

Who runs it and who belongs

NILGOSC was set up by the government in April 1950 and runs the scheme for councils and similar bodies in Northern Ireland. Employers take part either as designated employing authorities or because they have been admitted to the scheme. If you work for a council or one of the other bodies in the scheme, your employer will tell you whether you are in it and from when. For the wider job picture, see public sector jobs with Northern Ireland councils and Belfast City Council jobs.

What members pay from 1 April 2026

The bands come from NILGOSC’s Circular 07/2026, which applies from 1 April 2026. They were raised in line with the 3.8% September 2025 inflation figure. NILGOSC tells employers to apply them to actual pensionable pay, not to full-time equivalent pay, so a part-time worker’s band depends on what they actually earn.

Pensionable pay	Main section	50/50 section
Up to £18,900	5.5%	2.75%
£18,901 to £29,100	5.8%	2.90%
£29,101 to £48,700	6.5%	3.25%
£48,701 to £59,300	6.8%	3.40%
£59,301 to £117,800	8.5%	4.25%
More than £117,800	10.5%	5.25%

Say you earn £25,000 in a council post. You fall in the second band, so you would pay 5.8%, or £1,450 a year, or 2.9% (£725) in the 50/50 section. The take-home pay calculator shows the effect on monthly pay.

What you build up

From 1 April 2015 the scheme uses career average revalued earnings. Each year you build up 1/49 of your pensionable pay as pension, which is about 2.04%. Each year the pension in your account is revalued, and for 2026 that adjustment is 3.8%. Pensions already being paid also rise by 3.8% from 6 April 2026, for pensions that began before 7 April 2025.

Earlier service is calculated differently. Membership from 1 April 2009 to 31 March 2015 builds at 1/60 of pay, and before 1 April 2009 it was 1/80 of pay as pension plus a lump sum of 3/80ths. Those older benefits were worked out on a final salary basis.

You can swap some pension for a larger tax-free lump sum, at £12 of lump sum for every £1 of annual pension given up, subject to HMRC limits.

Retirement age

For benefits built up from 1 April 2015, the normal pension age matches your State Pension age, with a minimum of 65. For members who left before 1 April 2015, NILGOSC gives a normal retirement age of 65. Check yours with the gov.uk State Pension age calculator, and see the State Pension age guide for how it is changing.

What the employer pays

Most employers are in the main group with a pooled rate. NILGOSC’s actuary set the future service rate for that group at 15.5% of payroll for each of the three years from 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2029. Employers outside the main group have individual rates.

How it differs from the English LGPS

The scheme is separate from the LGPS in England and Wales, with its own regulations and its own administrator. The most visible difference is the contribution structure. NI has six bands, from 5.5% to 10.5%, with the first band ending at £18,900. The England and Wales LGPS has nine bands from 5.5% to 12.5%, with the first ending at £18,400. In the middle of the range the rates are the same: for example 6.5% applies to pay from £29,001 to £47,300 in England and Wales, and £29,101 to £48,700 in Northern Ireland. Higher earners generally pay less in Northern Ireland: someone on £100,000 pays 8.5% under the NILGOSC bands, compared with 9.9% in the England and Wales scheme.

The LGPS guide covers the England and Wales rules. If you move between the two, ask both administrators how your service is treated before assuming it transfers as is.

Extra pension

NILGOSC confirmed that the limit for additional pension is £9,158 a year from 1 April 2026. That limit applies to members buying extra pension and to any extra pension an employer awards. Your employer or NILGOSC can give you a quote for your own circumstances.