Govt extends UPS option for staff who joined April-August 2025 till Sept 30

The Finance Ministry said central staff who joined service between April 1 and August 31, 2025 can now opt for UPS instead of NPS, with flexibility to return later if they wish

The central government has extended a one-time option for employees who joined service between April 1, 2025 and August 31, 2025 to migrate from the National Pension System (NPS) to the Unified Pension Scheme (UPS), the Finance Ministry said on Tuesday.

 

The UPS was notified earlier this year on January 24, 2025. The decision follows recent clarifications and developments in the scheme.

 

Employees covered under the extension will now have time until September 30, 2025 to exercise the option, which is also the last date prescribed for other eligible categories of employees and past retirees under the NPS to shift to the UPS.

 

The ministry said the initiative is aimed at giving central government staff “an informed choice” in securing their post-retirement financial future. Employees opting for the UPS will still have the flexibility to switch back to the NPS at a later stage if they wish.

 

Earlier, Business Standard reported that only 1.37 per cent of eligible central government employees had opted for the UPS so far.

 

In a written reply to the Lok Sabha on July 28, 2025, the Finance Ministry informed that as of July 20, 2025, a total of 31,555 employees had chosen the scheme. The government has given an extension of three months, until September 2025, from the earlier deadline of June 30, 2025 for employees to exercise their option.

 

Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary said the UPS has been introduced as an option under the NPS for central government employees covered by the NPS, with the objective of providing assured payouts.