Improved support for terminally ill PPF and FAS members

• Terminal illness life expectancy period extended from 6 months to 12 months

• Eligible PPF and FAS members can access a terminal ill health payment sooner

The Pension Protection Fund (PPF) has today announced that changes to terminal illness provisions for PPF and Financial Assistance Scheme (FAS) members have come into effect, following the Pension Schemes Act 2026. The change extends the life expectancy criterion from 6 months to 12 months.

Previously, legislation stipulated that PPF and FAS members were eligible to receive a terminal ill health payment if they had been diagnosed with a terminal illness and were expected to have six months or less to live. From 29 June 2026, that has changed to 12 months, bringing the definition broadly into line with Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) social security payment rules. This allows payments to be made earlier for terminally ill members, helping eligible members to access their benefits sooner when it can make a real difference.

Members diagnosed with a terminal illness, where a doctor confirms that they have 12 months or less to live, can receive a terminal ill health payment before reaching their normal pension age. For PPF members, this is usually a one-off tax-free lump sum equal to two years’ compensation. For FAS members, it means they can begin receiving their monthly assistance payments earlier, with payments continuing for the rest of their life.

By making payments available earlier, the change will help terminally ill members and their families access financial support sooner, helping with expenses associated with end-of-life care and giving people more financial certainty at a difficult time.

Sara Protheroe, Chief Customer Officer at the PPF said: “We welcome this change, which will help terminally ill PPF and FAS members access financial support sooner, at a time when it can make a real difference. For members and their families facing an incredibly difficult period, having greater certainty and flexibility can help ease some of the financial pressure.”

-ENDS-

Notes to Editors 
For further press information, please contact:

PPF Press Office
020 8406 2107
[email protected]

About the PPF 

The Pension Protection Fund (PPF) is a public corporation, set up by the Pensions Act 2004, and has been protecting members of eligible defined benefit (DB) pension schemes across the UK since 2005. The PPF is run by an independent Board and accountable to Parliament through the Secretary of State for the Department for Work and Pensions. It protects close to 8.6 million members belonging to almost 5,000 pension schemes. If an employer collapses and its DB pension scheme cannot pay members what they were promised, the PPF pays compensation for their lost pensions. The PPF is now funded principally through assets from transferring schemes, recoveries, and investment returns.  
The PPF has over £31 billion of assets under management. Separate and additionally to the Pension Protection Fund, it also administers the Fraud Compensation Fund (FCF), the government’s Financial Assistance Scheme (FAS). It looks after over 400,000 members across the PPF and FAS.