On 13 January 2015, the Northern Ireland Assembly approved a motion that the Westminster Pension Schemes Act 2015 (‘the Act’) extend to legislate for Northern Ireland for the purpose of restricting transfers from the unfunded public service defined benefit pension schemes to defined contribution schemes. Section 71 of the Act amends section 91 the Pension Schemes (Northern Ireland) Act 1993 so that public service pension entitlements under that section cannot be transferred to schemes in which they could be drawn down as flexible benefits.
Q&A - Exceptions to the Transfer Ban - May 2015