Teachers’ Pensions Early Retirement Calculator (55–57–60)
Early Retirement Calculator
Thinking about retiring early from the Teachers’ Pension Scheme?
Use this free early retirement calculator to see how your pension changes if you retire at
55, 57, 60 or wait until your Normal Pension Age (NPA).
We apply the official actuarial reduction factors published by Teachers’ Pensions,
so you can compare Final Salary (NPA 60/65) and CARE (Career Average) benefits.
The tool also shows the impact of the 2028 Minimum Pension Age change (rising from 55 to 57)
and lets you model the optional CARE Buy Out.
Simple, jargon-free estimates to help you plan your retirement with confidence.
Enter the pension you’ve already built up in each slice, then choose a retirement age. We’ll apply the official early-retirement factors.
Minimum pension age: usually 55, rising to 57 on 6 April 2028.
If you have both Final Salary and CARE service, current rules say you must take all benefits together.
Before you apply: submit your Early Retirement application about 6 months in advance;
if you’re still employed, your employer’s consent is required (they can’t delay it beyond 6 months).
All teaching contracts must end before your payable date.
Explore other Teachers’ Pensions tools
Lump Sum Calculator –
see how much tax-free cash you could take and how it changes your annual pension.
CARE Impact Calculator –
model the effect of career breaks, part-time work, or strike days on your CARE pension.
If you’re in pensionable or excluded employment when you apply, your employer’s consent is required.
They can’t withhold consent for more than 6 months from your request date.
You must also end all teaching contracts before the payable date (a non-working day isn’t enough).
From 6 April 2028, the normal minimum pension age rises to 57.
Final Salary benefits keep a limited right to take from 55 where you have an unfettered right,
but CARE benefits can’t be taken before 57 (other than ill-health).
If you have both Final Salary and CARE, current rules say you must take all benefits together;
the Department for Education is expected to clarify how mixed cases work around 2028.
No. A single day with no hours is not a break in service.
For Early Retirement, your contract itself must formally end (on paper).
If you try to take your pension while your contract is still technically active, Teachers’ Pensions will treat the application as invalid.
Example: if your agency just doesn’t book you on Tuesday, but your supply contract is still open, that doesn’t count.
You need a formal end date in writing before your pension can start.
Apply via My Pension Online about 6 months before your target date (earlier submissions are rejected).
Early Retirement is member-initiated and actuarially reduced.
Premature Retirement is employer-initiated and only available with employer agreement;
after April 2028 it won’t retain a right at 55.
The factor is the official percentage applied if you retire early.
For example, a factor of 0.827 means you’ll receive about 83% of that slice of pension for life, because you are retiring before its Normal Pension Age.
Currently you can normally access Teachers’ Pensions from age 55. From 6 April 2028, this rises to age 57.
Ill-health retirement is separate and can be taken earlier if you meet the criteria.
Buy Out was an optional extra contribution in the CARE scheme that lets you remove up to 3 years of early-retirement reduction.
If you didn’t pay extra for this at the time, leave it set to “No.”
No - this calculator shows your yearly pension only.
If you want to see how lump sums affect your income, use our
Lump Sum Calculator.