FAQ: If a GP locum works for the same practice for more than six months, how are earnings pensioned?
When working as a GP locum you must bear in mind that there are multiple legal and technical statuses applied to you:
- Legal employment status.
- HMRC tax status.
- GMC registration.
- NHS pension scheme membership.
- Medical indemnity.
- National Performers List.
This FAQ applies only to the NHS pension scheme regulations and assumes that you have been paying contributions using the appropriate Locum A forms in that practice.
Advice from NHSBSA (NHS Pensions) to NASGP
In light of a recent decision by the Department of Health and Social Care regarding the annualisation of pensionable pay, GP locums now have two choices regarding how they pension their locum work from the seventh month onwards.
1. Using Form A and Form B for more than six months
This method was introduced 6 March 2018, and may prevent your GP locum contributions being subject to annualisation rules under the 2015 scheme.
You must decide how this income is going to be pensioned, either as a GP locum through the usual GP Locum Form A ten-week deadline rules or as a Type 2 practitioner; you will not be able to convert any GP locum work that has been pensioned via the Form A & Form B into Type 2 practitioner work.
2. Type 2 practitioners
Going in to month seven there is, or has been, a planned regularity to the cover you are providing i.e. the dates and/or times and/or lengths of session that you have been asked to work.
- In this case, the NHS Pension scheme regulations allows you to contribute 100% of your earnings via the practice, with the practice paying the employer’s contribution direct.
- You will need to liaise with the practice manager, for them to administer.
- These payments may be subject to the new NHS 2015 pension scheme annualisation rules for Type 2 practitioners.
- You can pension all the regular locum work at this practice as a Type 2 practitioner if you know from the outset that your work for this practice will exceed six months.”
What about GP SOLO forms?
- SOLO forms are not an option for a GP Locum carrying out practice work.
- If the GP is asked to do regular locum work at the same practice GP SOLO forms do not apply.
- GP SOLO forms are to be used to capture ‘ad hoc’ additional work outside of the practice contract, as per guidance notes on GP SOLO form.
Danielle Adair
Stakeholder Engagement Manager – GP & GP Practices
NHS Pensions
What if you pensioned your locum work as Type 2 in 2016/17?
You can appeal for a refund.
Can I just not pension some of my locum work?
This is an option – see our FAQ on this.
"NASGP came along way before people understood the need for sessional and small group practices to be valued by the system. On joining as a single-handed GP many years ago, I was welcomed into the team by initially wrote a few blogs for the organisation, which followed my understanding of yet another NHS reorganisation. It was only due to the vision and drive of Richard, your founder, that NASGP survived the large practice dominance. The inception of being a portal for the needs of GP locums was a masterstroke. Those who knew about it quickly realised the true meaning of networking. So here we are many years down the line and in footballing terminology NASGP now play in the Premier League.
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