If you’re still paying in to USS, speak to your employer. They’ll be able to provide you with a form to get things started.
If you’ve stopped paying in to USS, you can call our Member Service Team on 0333 300 1043, Monday to Friday, from 9am to 5pm.
We may be able to help
Having to stop working completely because of an illness or an injury isn’t a nice thought. Unfortunately, it could happen – and we may be able to help.
If you’ve been paying in to USS for at least two years and have an illness or condition that stops you from working, or reduces your capacity to work, you may be eligible to retire early with your USS benefits.
There are three different types of ill health retirement – what you’ll get will depend on several factors including how much you’re able to work. Find out about these types, when you may be eligible and what you’ll need to do in our ill health retirement factsheet for members paying in.
If you’re no longer paying in your benefits are a little different. You’ll get the benefits you’ve built up to when you left USS, without any enhancements to the Normal Pension Age (NPA). However, they won’t be reduced due to early payment. Take a look at our ill health retirement for leavers factsheet for more information.
If you're suffering from a serious ill health condition and have a limited life expectancy, we may be able to pay all your benefits as a lump sum to help support you and your family through this difficult period. Find out more in our serious ill health lump sum factsheet.
Got a question?
Document download
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Serious ill health lump sum factsheet pdf (147kb)
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Application for full commutation of benefits form docx (73kb)
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Application for full commutation of benefits form pdf (221kb)
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Ill health retirement application form docx (53kb)
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Ill health retirement application form pdf (144kb)