Good News Pensioners! Retired NPS Subscribers Can Claim Additional Benefits Of UPS; Apply Before June 30, How?

In major good news, the retired employees who are part of national pension systems (NPS) can now claim additional benefits under the Unified Pension Scheme (UPS). These include lumpsum payment periodically or a monthly top-up amount or arrears with simple interest. These additional benefits are over and above the already claimed benefits under NPS.

Good News for Pensioners:

The Finance Ministry on May 30th said, "The Central government NPS subscribers who retired on or before 31/03/2025 with minimum 10 years of qualifying service or their legally wedded spouse can claim the following additional benefits under Unified Pension Scheme (UPS), over and above the NPS benefits already claimed."

These additional benefits are:

1. Lumpsum payment (one time) one-tenth of last drawn basic pay and dearness allowance thereon for each completed six months of qualifying service.

2. Monthly Top-up amount is calculated based on admissible UPS payout + Dearness relief (DR) minus the representative annuity amount under NPS.

3. Arrears with simple interest as per applicable PPF rates.

How To Claim Additional Benefits:

1. Physical mode- By visiting the DDO & submitting the Form (B2- for subscriber & B4/B6 - for the legally wedded spouse). The form can be downloaded from the following- www.npscra.nsdl.co.in/ups.php

2. Online mode- Visit www.npscra.nsdl.co.in/ups.php to fill out the online form.

The Finance Ministry said that the last date to claim the benefits is June 30, 2025.

Unified Pension Schemes (UPS) Benefits:

1. Assured pension: 50% of the average basic pay drawn over the last 12 months before superannuation for a minimum qualifying service of 25 years. This pay is to be proportionate for a lesser service period up to a minimum of 10 years of service.

2. Assured family pension: @60% of the pension of the employee immediately before her/his demise.

3. Assured minimum pension: @10,000 per month on superannuation after a minimum of 10 years of service.

4. Inflation indexation: on assured pension, on assured family pension and assured minimum pension:

Dearness Relief based on the All India Consumer Price Index for Industrial Workers (AICPI-IW) as in the case of service employees

5. Lump sum payment at superannuation in addition to gratuity:

1/10th of monthly emoluments (pay + DA) as on the date of superannuation for every completed six months of service, Notably, this payment will not reduce the quantum of assured pension.

Who Is Better, UPS, or NPS?

According to the ClearTax report, UPS offers a balanced approach by combining the benefits of NPS and OPS, making it a robust option for those seeking financial security. UPS provides a fixed pension amount, including an assured minimum pension, inflation indexation and an assured family pension.

On the other hand, NPS may provide higher pensions or returns as employees invest in market-linked investments. Employees who understand how equity markets work and have at least 10-20 years remaining in government service can consider NPS as it has the potential to grow substantially and receive higher returns, ClearTax report said.

The report lastly said, employees nearing retirement or who do not want to take market risk can consider UPS, as it provides a stable and predictable income after retirement.