Protected Pension Age

When was the Protected Pension Age introduced?

The concept of PPA was introduced when the government raised the minimum pension age from 50 to 55 in April 2010. This change was made to encourage people to save for longer and reduce early withdrawals.

However, some individuals had occupational pension schemes with earlier retirement rights. To avoid penalising them, the government introduced a PPA of less than 55. This allowed some savers to keep their earlier retirement age under certain conditions.

There’s a second type of PPA which has been introduced due to the increase in NMPA to 57 in 2028. When the new NMPA of 57 comes into force in 2028, you might qualify for a protected pension age of 55 or 56. This will depend on the details of your pension scheme. For example, you might qualify for a PPA of 55 if your pension provider’s trust deed refers to the age of ‘55’ or ‘56’ instead of ‘Normal Minimum Pension Age’.

Pension transfers and Protected Pension Age

The pension industry has had to carefully manage PPA when handling pension transfers. Key industry responses include:

• Ensuring eligibility rules are met - if someone transfers their pension to a provider who’s unable to accommodate PPA, this feature may be lost unless the transfer meets strict rules.
• Reaching out to customers retrospectively - in response to the government introducing a PPA of 55 or 56, some providers have reviewed past transfers to check if customers were affected by the loss of PPA. In some cases, they’ve contacted customers to inform them that PPA applied to their transfer. However, receiving providers aren’t obliged by legislation to recognise PPA unless their scheme rules require this.
• Providing clearer guidance - ceding providers (where the pension is being transferred from) should now offer clearer communication about PPA on pension transfers if this applies to their scheme. This will enable customers to make better informed decisions.

PensionBee and Protected Pension Age

PPA applies on a scheme-by-scheme basis. The scheme rules governing the PensionBee pension confirm that the age our customers can start to take benefits is in line with the NMPA. This means PensionBee doesn’t offer PPA on our scheme. We remain committed to supporting the increase in the NMPA.

The law is raising the NMPA to help ensure that pension savers:

• have enough retirement income to meet their needs; 
• can maintain their savings for longer; and
• can avoid financial hardship prior to the increasing State Pension age of 67 from 2028.

Transferring in from a scheme with a PPA

Customers that transfer a pension into PensionBee can retain their PPA (of 55 or 56) in respect of this element, where we’ve correctly been informed. We’ll administer this for customers in due course, which means you’ll be able to access a proportion of your pension, once you reach the relevant age, even after the NMPA rises to 57 in April 2028.  

While your PPA will give you the right to access these funds early, we recommend customers think very carefully before doing so. Accessing your pension earlier will result in a smaller overall pot and less time for investments to potentially grow, which could impact standard of living later in retirement. 

Please contact us closer to your 55th birthday to find out what may be available.

For free, impartial guidance on your options, we strongly encourage you to visit MoneyHelper.

Risk warning

As always with investments, your capital is at risk. The value of your investment can go down as well as up, and you may get back less than you invest. This information should not be regarded as financial advice.

Last edited: 15-05-2026