This means that central government employees in service as of that date and who are covered under the National Pension Scheme (NPS), as well as newly recruited employees on or after April 1, 2025, will be enrolled under UPS, according to a report by news agency PTI.

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What does the UPS promise?

The UPS promises to give government employees an assured pension of 50% of their average basic pay drawn over the past 12 months, prior to superannuation.

What is Superannuation?

Superannuation refers to a company's pension plan, or the retirement scheme offered by employers to their employees.

With this, tax benefit funds are collected in individual employee accounts till their age of retirement.

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Who is eligible for UPS?

The NPS and UPS options are available to 23 lakh central government employees across India. However, this is not for those employees who are removed, dismissed or have resigned from service.

How to access the UPS enrollment forms?

All central government employees can find the enrolment and claim forms online from April 1, 2025 on the official website of Protean CRA. However, the forms can also be submitted physically for those who choose to.

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What's new with the UPS?

With the UPS, the full rate of assured payout is 50% of 12 months' average basic pay, immediately prior to superannuation, for a minimum qualifying service of 25 years against a market returns linked payout under the NPS, as per the report.

The UPS was approved by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led Union Cabinet on August 24, 2024 while the NPS had already come into effect on January 1, 2004.

The UPS is also contributory in nature, with employees required to contribute 10 per cent of their basic salary and dearness allowance while the employer's contribution (the central government) will be 18.5 per cent.

The eventual payout also depends on the market returns on that corpus, which are mostly invested into government debt.