Thinking of rejoining and wondering what happens to your Early Departure Payments (EDP)? Read on…
Question:
I left the Regular Armed Forces last year with Early Departure Payments (EDPs) from AFPS 05 and AFPS 15. What happens to the EDPs if I rejoin the Regular Armed Forces within one year of leaving?
Answer: This is a lengthy answer, but here goes…
AFPS 05 EDP. If you are in receipt of an AFPS 05 EDP annual income and rejoin the Regular Armed Forces, the EDP will stop in full. It would restart when you leave the Armed Forces again. You may also need to pay back some or all of the tax-free EDP lump sum if the gap between the two periods of service was not long enough. The rule is that you must pay back any unexpired portion of the lump sum and this is calculated based on your final salary. For example, if your AFPS 05 EDP lump sum was £25k and your final salary from your previous service had been £50k, you would need to wait for 6 months before rejoining in order to retain the full lump sum. If you leave again before age 55, your EDP income and lump sum may be recalculated if a promotion causes the pension to be uplifted. If you are age 55 or over, your EDP income would not restart, and you would instead receive your AFPS 05 immediate pension.
AFPS 15 EDP. If you are in receipt of an EDP and re-join the Regular Armed Forces, you have one of two choices:
- You can retain your EDP lump sum and continue to receive the monthly income. Your EDP would remain in payment but would not be recalculated when you leave the Regular Armed Forces at the end of your second period of service; or
You can choose to stop your EDP monthly income and repay any lump sum already received in full (including interest). At the end of your second period of service, you would be entitled to a new EDP lump sum and monthly income (if you leave before age 60). If you leave at or after age 60, you would not receive an EDP but instead receive an AFPS15 immediate pension
Next week, we have something on added pension for you, meanwhile you can read more in this series here.
