If you want to make additional pension savings to increase your pension benefits when you retire, there are two ways to do so. These are additional voluntary contributions (AVCs) and additional pension contributions (APCs).
Please make sure, if you're thinking about making additional pension contributions, you don't go over the annual allowance and lifetime allowance tax limits. For more information visit the page on tax and pension benefits.
For more information about AVCs and APCs, please have a look at our 'Topping up your pension' and AVCs guides which can be found under 'Related Documents'.
Additional voluntary contributions (AVCs)
AVCs allow you to pay more to build up extra savings for retirement. Shropshire County Pension Fund’s ‘In-House’ AVC provider is Prudential. To find out more about AVCs, please visit their website. A link to their website can be found under 'Related Links'.
The contact number for the AVC member support team is 0345 6000 343. They can’t give you advice but they can give you more information, chat to you about your personal situation and help answer questions you may have about AVCs. Using their online service members can manage and keep track of their AVC, including increase, decrease, stop and re-start contributions and make changes to their fund choices.
Additional pension contributions (APCs)
You can buy extra pension by paying APCs regularly over a period of time, or by paying a one-off lump sum. The maximum amount of additional pension you can buy is £7,579 (this figure increases each year in line with the cost of living).
How much the APC costs depends on how much extra pension you want to buy, the age you start paying the extra contributions and the length of time you want to pay them over.
To find out how much you can increase your LGPS pension by paying Additional Pension Contributions (APCs), use the online calculator which can be found on the LGPS member website (a link to their calculator can be found under 'Related Links').