Taking a career break

A 'career break' is an unpaid period of absence, but you remain employed by BTP.

If you're planning to go on a 'career break', read the information on this page to understand what may happen to your pension while you're absent from work and once you return.

While you're on a career break

While you are on a career break, you will not pay contributions or earn membership. However, you will continue to be covered for death in service and incapacity, in the same way you were covered before the career break started.

Once you return from your break

Once you return to work from a career break, you can tell BTP that you want to either:

• Make up pension contributions and buy-back the missed membership. BTP will also pay arrears of contributions and your pension will not be affected by the career break; or
• Not pay arrears and have the period of career break counted as a non-contributory membership. In this situation, you will have a gap in membership for that period that will not count towards your pension.
  

If you do not return to work following a career break, your pension scheme membership will be treated as though you stopped membership on the day your career break started.