Overview

• September 30, 2025 is the final day for eligible staff and certain past NPS retirees to choose the Unified Pension Scheme or remain in the National Pension System.
• Those who do not opt into UPS by the deadline will stay in NPS and will not get another opportunity to shift later.
• UPS is available to central employees appointed on or after January 1, 2004 who are already in NPS, with effective rollout from April 1, 2025.
• A one-time switch from UPS back to NPS is permitted under timing conditions near retirement, but returning to UPS after that switch is not allowed.
• Authorities reiterated that switching is barred for cases involving removal, dismissal, compulsory retirement as a penalty, or ongoing or contemplated disciplinary proceedings, as uptake remains about 1 lakh out of roughly 23 lakh eligible.