Unified Pension Scheme (UPS) Rules From April 1: PFRDA notifies operational guidelines—5 things to know

The Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) has notified regulations for operationalising the Unified Pension Scheme (UPS), with effect from April 1. According to an official notification dated March 19 by the pension fund regulator, enrolment and claim forms for eligible categories of central government staff will also be available online on the Protean CRA portal (npscra.nsdl.co.in) from the same day.

The forms will also be available to the government employees in offline mode.

Here are five important things to know about this development:

Add Zee Business as a Preferred Source

1. Optional Pension Scheme for All Central Government Employees

UPS will be available as an option for the central government employees presently covered under the National Pension Scheme (NPS).

2. The rules will enable three groups of government employees to enrol for the pension scheme:

• Existing central government employees in service as on April 1, 2025, covered under National Pension Scheme (NPS)
• New central government recruits joining service on or after April 1
• Central government employees covered under NPS having superannuated, voluntarily retired or retired under Fundamental Rules 56(j) on or before March 31

3. In the third category of employees, in case a subscriber dies after superannuating or retiring without exercising the option for UPS, their legally wedded spouse will be able to opt for the scheme.

4. When will existing central government employees be able to opt for UPS?

Central government staff looking to opt for the unified pension scheme will be required to apply from April 1 till June 30, according to the PFRDA.

5. When will new central government recruits be able to opt for UPS?

Central government recruits joining on or after April 1 will be required to opt within 30 days of joining service.