Totalisation of pension contribution and benefits
I worked for different private companies for 10 years before I moved to the public service where I have been working for a public corporation for 2 years now. When I was working in the private sector I was contributing to the National Social Security Fund. Now I am contributing to the Public Service Social Security Fund. I am attaining compulsory retirement age in the next 2 months to come. How can I claim the contributions that I made to the National Social Security Fund before I changed my employment?
MM, Mwanza
Section 92A of the National Social Security Fund Act [Cap.58 R.E 2018] and the Social Security Scheme (Totalisation of Periods of Contributions) Guidelines, 2018 provide guidance on how to protect the interest of an employee who has contributed to more than one social security fund. When an employee changes employment from the private sector to public service, her/his membership also changes from NSSF to PSSF. However, the contributions made to NSSF do not move to PSSF. All what the employee is entitled to is the right to have the periods of contributions to both or all funds added up in calculating the pension benefit as if all contributions were made to the last scheme.
An employee who intends to exercise the right to totalisation should apply in writing to the scheme where the last contributions were made and serve a copy of the application to the scheme or other schemes to which he previously contributed. Computation and determination of lump sum benefits is made by each corresponding scheme but transferred to the last scheme to which the employee contributed for administering payment to the employee.
It is important to note that regulation 6 of the Social Security Scheme (Totalisation of the Periods of Contribution) Guidelines, 2018 limits the scope of the Guidelines to employees who changed their employment from private to public or public to private sector after the Guidelines came into force on 3rd August, 2018. Hence only employees who changed the employment after 3rd August, 2018 are entitled to lodge application for totalisation of the periods of contributions for the purpose of calculation of the pension benefits, and we believe you fall in this category.