Last updated: 2 July 2026
Editorial note: This guide provides general information about the Dyfed Pension Fund and the Local Government Pension Scheme. Pension rules and individual circumstances can vary.
You should confirm personal figures, retirement dates and benefit options directly with the Fund before making a financial decision.
The Dyfed Pension Fund administers pension benefits for thousands of current and former public-sector employees in West Wales.
You may be looking for the online login, checking when your pension will be paid, planning retirement or trying to understand what happens after leaving your job.
This guide explains how the Fund works, who it covers and where you can manage your pension securely. It focuses mainly on the Local Government Pension Scheme, commonly known as the LGPS.
Quick Answer: What Is the Dyfed Pension Fund?
The Dyfed Pension Fund is a Local Government Pension Scheme fund administered by Carmarthenshire County Council.
It manages benefits for eligible employees of Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion and Pembrokeshire county councils, together with numerous colleges, councils and other participating employers.
It is a defined-benefit pension arrangement. This means your retirement income is calculated under the scheme rules rather than being based only on the value of an individual investment pot.
Dyfed Pension Fund at a Glance
| Topic | Key information |
|---|---|
| Administering authority | Carmarthenshire County Council |
| Main scheme | Local Government Pension Scheme |
| Main areas covered | Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion and Pembrokeshire |
| Member types | Active, deferred and pensioner members |
| Online account | My Pension Online |
| Postal address | County Hall, Carmarthen, SA31 1JP |
| Pension type | Defined-benefit occupational pension |
Who Can Join the Dyfed Pension Fund?
Eligible employees of Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion and Pembrokeshire county councils are generally enrolled in the LGPS automatically, although you can normally choose to opt out.
Membership also extends to eligible workers employed by other participating organisations. These may include:
- Town and community councils
- Further and higher education institutions
- Police and fire organisations for eligible non-uniformed staff
- Public-service bodies admitted to the Fund
- Certain contractors providing outsourced public services
Your eligibility depends on your employer, employment status and role. Teachers, police officers and firefighters may belong to separate occupational schemes with different benefit and retirement rules.
If you are unsure which pension arrangement applies to you, check your payslip, employment documents or annual benefit statement before relying on LGPS guidance.
How Do You Log In to the Dyfed Pension Fund?
You can access your pension information through the Fund’s secure member portal.
The online service is available to active members, people with deferred benefits and pensioners. Depending on your membership status, you may be able to:
- View your pension record
- Access annual benefit statements
- Review personal and employment details
- Use retirement-planning tools
- Check pension payment information
- View tax codes, P60s or payment history
- Update certain contact or banking details
- Download forms and scheme documents
Do Existing Users Need to Register Again?
A new version of My Pension Online was introduced in January 2026. If you only registered for the previous system, you may need to create a new account.
The upgraded service uses two-step authentication. You sign in using your email address and confirm your identity with a one-time code sent to your telephone.
What Should You Do If You Cannot Log In?
First, confirm that you have registered for the current system rather than trying to use credentials from the old portal.
You should also check:
- Whether your email address was entered correctly
- Whether the verification message entered your spam folder
- Whether the Fund holds your current mobile number
- Whether you have requested several codes and are entering an expired one
- Whether your browser or device is up to date
Avoid creating several accounts for the same pension record. Contact the administration team when registration or identity-matching problems continue.
How Does the Dyfed Pension Fund Work?
The LGPS provides a pension calculated according to your pensionable earnings and membership history.
Benefits earned from 1 April 2014 are normally calculated on a Career Average Revalued Earnings basis. Under this system, part of your pensionable pay is added to your pension account during each scheme year and revalued in line with the scheme rules.
Qualifying benefits earned before 1 April 2014 may continue to be calculated under earlier final-salary arrangements. As a result, a long-serving member can have different parts of their pension calculated using different rules.
Your annual benefit statement should show the benefits currently recorded for you. It may also provide an estimate of what you could receive at Normal Pension Age.
Online estimates are helpful planning tools, but they are not guaranteed retirement quotations. Pay changes, missing employment information, retirement timing, tax rules and scheme corrections can affect the final amount.
How Much Do You Contribute?
Your LGPS contribution rate is normally based on your actual pensionable pay. Your employer also contributes to the Fund, although the employer’s payment does not appear as a personal pension pot in your name.
Contribution bands are reviewed periodically. Your payslip should show the amount deducted from your salary.
The LGPS also includes a 50/50 section. This allows an eligible member to pay approximately half the standard contribution while building up pension at half the normal rate. Certain death and ill-health protections usually continue in full while you are in this section.
The 50/50 arrangement is intended as a temporary alternative to opting out completely. You should review how reduced pension building could affect your long-term retirement income.
Can You Increase Your Benefits?
You may be able to build additional retirement benefits through:
- Additional Pension Contributions
- Additional Voluntary Contributions
- A transfer from another eligible pension arrangement
- Additional benefits offered through your employer
These options have different costs, risks and tax implications. A transfer can be particularly significant because you may be giving up guarantees or benefits from another scheme.
The Fund can explain its processes and provide scheme information, but it does not replace personalised regulated financial advice.
When Can You Take Your Dyfed Pension?
LGPS members can generally choose to take benefits between ages 55 and 75, subject to their membership record and the rules applying at the time.
Your Normal Pension Age for benefits earned from April 2014 is usually linked to your State Pension age. Taking benefits before that age will normally result in an actuarial reduction because the pension is expected to be paid for longer.
Early Retirement
You may be able to request your pension from age 55 if you have met the qualifying membership requirements. The amount may be reduced for early payment.
The reduction is not a penalty imposed personally on you. It is an actuarial adjustment designed to reflect the longer expected payment period.
Some older membership may have protections, including possible Rule of 85 protection. These rules are complex and may depend on your age, service and employer discretion.
Flexible Retirement
Flexible retirement may allow you to reduce your working hours or move to a less senior position while drawing some or all of your pension.
You usually need your employer’s approval. Your employer should have a policy explaining when it will consider flexible-retirement applications.
Ill-Health Retirement
You may qualify for immediate benefits if illness permanently prevents you from performing your job and the medical and scheme conditions are met.
The decision requires an employer-led process and an assessment from an appropriately qualified independent medical practitioner. A diagnosis alone does not guarantee an ill-health pension.
What Happens If You Leave Your Job?
When you leave an LGPS employment before retirement, you may become a deferred member.
A deferred pension remains in the scheme until you:
- Claim it when eligible
- Transfer it to another qualifying arrangement
- Combine it with another eligible LGPS record
- Receive another outcome permitted under the rules
Deferred benefits are normally adjusted over time under statutory pension-increase rules.
Keep your name, postal address, email address and telephone number updated after leaving. Your former employer will not necessarily pass later personal changes to the pension administration team.
Transferring a defined-benefit pension is a major financial decision. You could lose guaranteed lifetime income, survivor protection or inflation-linked benefits. Check the terms carefully and obtain regulated advice where required.
Dyfed Pension Fund Payment Dates for 2026/27
LGPS pensions are normally paid monthly in arrears on the last working day of the month. The Christmas payment is made on the final banking day before 25 December.
The Fund’s payment calendar lists the following dates:
| Payment month | Payment date |
|---|---|
| April 2026 | 30 April 2026 |
| May 2026 | 29 May 2026 |
| June 2026 | 30 June 2026 |
| July 2026 | 31 July 2026 |
| August 2026 | 28 August 2026 |
| September 2026 | 30 September 2026 |
| October 2026 | 30 October 2026 |
| November 2026 | 30 November 2026 |
| December 2026 | 24 December 2026 |
| January 2027 | 29 January 2027 |
| February 2027 | 26 February 2027 |
| March 2027 | 31 March 2027 |
A payment may appear at a different time of day depending on your bank. Check the scheduled date and your account before reporting a missing payment.
Contact the Fund promptly when a payment remains outstanding or your bank details have changed. For security reasons, never send full banking passwords, card PINs or online banking credentials.
How Do Annual Pension Increases Work?
LGPS pensions in payment and deferred benefits may receive statutory increases intended to provide inflation protection.
The date your pension started can affect how much of an annual increase you receive in the first year. A pension that began partway through the relevant period may receive a proportionate adjustment rather than the full headline rate.
Your net payment can also be affected by changes to your tax code. An increase in your gross pension does not always produce an identical percentage increase in the amount reaching your bank account.
Check your pension increase statement, payslip or online account for your personal figures.
What Happens When a Member Dies?
The LGPS can provide benefits for eligible dependants. Depending on the member’s circumstances, these may include:
- A survivor’s pension for a qualifying spouse, civil partner or cohabiting partner
- Eligible children’s pensions
- A death grant
- Benefits linked to active, deferred or pensioner membership
Completing an expression-of-wish nomination helps the Fund understand who you would like considered for a discretionary death grant. It does not operate in exactly the same way as a binding instruction in a will.
Review your nomination after marriage, divorce, bereavement or another major family change.
Common Misunderstandings
The Fund Is Not the State Pension
Your LGPS pension is an occupational pension. It is separate from the State Pension, although your State Pension age may influence your LGPS Normal Pension Age.
It Is Not an Individual Investment Pot
Investment performance affects the Fund’s finances, but your promised LGPS pension is calculated under defined-benefit rules. It is not simply the value of investments held in an account under your name.
Not Every Public-Sector Worker Uses the LGPS
Teachers, police officers and firefighters may have separate schemes. Always check which rules apply to your employment.
Early Access Is Not Automatically Free of Reductions
You may be able to draw benefits from the minimum pension age, but early-retirement reductions can apply.
Be cautious about anyone promising to unlock a pension unusually early, avoid tax or obtain guaranteed high returns. These statements can indicate a pension scam.
Real-Life Example
Sarah is 58 and works in a non-teaching role for a participating council. She is considering reducing her hours and taking part of her pension.
She begins by checking her annual benefit statement and using the retirement planner. She then asks her employer whether flexible retirement is permitted under its policy.
Before deciding, Sarah requests an official estimate showing the effect of taking benefits before her Normal Pension Age. She also reviews the impact on her monthly income, tax position and future pension building.
This approach gives her more reliable information than relying only on a general online estimate. Sarah’s circumstances are fictional, but the steps illustrate how you can prepare for a retirement discussion.
How Do You Contact the Dyfed Pension Fund?
You can find the current administration numbers and opening hours on the Fund’s contact page.
The general administration details are:
Email: pensions@carmarthenshire.gov.uk
Address: Dyfed Pension Fund, County Hall, Carmarthen, SA31 1JP
Telephone enquiries are divided by surname:
| Surname | Telephone number |
|---|---|
| A–G | 01267 224 625 |
| H–O | 01267 224 909 |
| P–Z | 01267 224 125 |
Have your National Insurance number, employer information and pension reference available. Do not include unnecessary financial details in an unsecured message.
What Should You Do Next?
Your next action depends on your membership status.
As an active member, check your annual statement, contribution deductions and beneficiary nomination. If you are approaching retirement, request an official estimate well before your planned leaving date.
As a deferred member, keep your contact information updated and check when your benefits can be claimed. Do not transfer a guaranteed pension solely because of an unsolicited offer.
As a pensioner, review payment dates, tax documents and annual increase information. Notify the Fund securely before changing the bank account used for your pension.
Key Takeaways
The Dyfed Pension Fund administers LGPS benefits for eligible employees and former employees across West Wales.
You can use My Pension Online to access statements, retirement tools and pension information. Previous users of the old service may need to register again.
The LGPS is a defined-benefit scheme, so your pension is calculated under scheme rules rather than being based only on an individual investment pot.
Early retirement, transfers, flexible retirement and ill-health applications can have significant consequences. Obtain official figures before making a decision.
Conclusion
The Dyfed Pension Fund provides retirement benefits for active members, deferred members and pensioners connected with participating employers in Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion, Pembrokeshire and surrounding areas.
Whether you are checking your login, reviewing payment dates or planning retirement, use your personal pension record and an official quotation rather than relying solely on general estimates. Keeping your contact information updated will also help ensure that you receive important statements and benefit information.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the Dyfed Pension Fund part of Carmarthenshire County Council?
Carmarthenshire County Council is the administering authority responsible for managing the Fund’s administration and assets.
Can you check your Dyfed pension online?
Yes. Active, deferred and pensioner members can use My Pension Online, although the information available depends on membership status.
Do old login details still work?
People who used the previous online service may need to register again for the upgraded system introduced in January 2026.
Is the Dyfed pension separate from the State Pension?
Yes. The LGPS is a workplace pension. State Pension entitlement is assessed separately under national rules.
Can you claim your pension at 55?
Eligible members can generally request benefits from age 55 under current rules, but reductions and other conditions may apply.
What is a deferred pension?
It is a pension benefit left in the scheme after you leave employment before retirement. It is normally payable later or may be transferable under scheme rules.
Can you transfer your Dyfed pension?
A transfer may be possible, but transferring defined benefits can mean losing valuable guarantees. Advice may be legally required in some circumstances.
When are pensions paid?
LGPS pensions are normally paid monthly in arrears on the last working day, with a different date used for the Christmas period.
Does the Fund provide financial advice?
No. It can explain scheme rules, processes and benefit figures, but it does not provide personalised regulated financial advice.
