NHS McCloud Remedy and RPSS: What Doctors Need to Check, Correct and Report in 2026

Receiving a Remediable Pension Savings Statement, usually shortened to RPSS, can be confusing.

You may already have:

• old Pension Savings Statements;
• previous Annual Allowance calculations;
• Self Assessment returns;
• an NHS Scheme Pays election;
• several NHS employments;
• GP pension records;
• private pension contributions.

Then a new RPSS arrives containing revised pension information for years you thought had already been dealt with.

The immediate concern is usually:

Does this mean my previous pension tax calculation was wrong?

Possibly.

But an RPSS does not automatically mean you owe more tax.

The McCloud remedy can produce several outcomes.

Your previous Annual Allowance liability might:

• increase;
• decrease;
• disappear;
• remain unchanged.

You may become entitled to a refund.

You may instead have a new or additional Annual Allowance charge.

A previous Scheme Pays election might need adjustment.

Or the statement itself may need investigating because the underlying employment data does not look right.

The correct process is therefore not:

RPSS received → immediately pay tax.

It is:

RPSS received → check pension records → recalculate affected years → establish tax change → correct HMRC/Scheme Pays position.

Kudos Accounting's specialist NHS Pension Accountants support doctors, consultants, GP partners, salaried GPs and other healthcare professionals with exactly this type of pension-record and tax reconciliation.

McCloud in 60 seconds

The MccCloud remedy arose because transitional protections introduced during public-service pension reforms were found to have discriminated based on age.

For NHS Pension Scheme purposes, the relevant remedy period is 1 April 2015 to 31 March 2022.

For affected NHS members, remedy-period service that had moved into the reformed 2015 Scheme was generally rolled back into the appropriate legacy 1995/2008 Scheme from 1 October 2023.

At retirement, affected members are given a choice of receiving the appropriate legacy or 2015 Scheme benefits for remedy-period service.

All active NHS Pension Scheme members accrue future benefits in the 2015 Scheme from 1 April 2022.

The important tax consequence is this:

Changing which scheme your historic service sits in can change the pension growth previously used for Annual Allowance purposes.

That is why the RPSS exists.

Are you affected by McCloud?

NHSBSA says the remedy generally affects qualifying members who joined a public-service pension scheme on or before 31 March 2012 and had relevant pensionable service during the remedy period, subject to the detailed continuity and protection rules. Someone who first joined a public-service scheme after 31 March 2012 is generally not affected.

McCloud eligibility snapshot

This is a simplified screening table.

The actual NHSBSA eligibility rules should be used where employment history is unusual.

RPSS, PSS and RSS: they are not the same document

One of the biggest sources of confusion is the number of similar NHS pension acronyms.

NHS pension statement comparison

An RPSS is fundamentally a pension-tax document.

An RSS is fundamentally a remedy-benefit-choice document.

They are related, but they do different jobs.

What is a remediable pension savings statement?

An RPSS provides updated pension information where the public-service pension remedy has changed an affected member's historical pension input position.

NHSBSA says an RPSS is produced automatically where rollback or the remedy creates a relevant Annual Allowance impact.

The figures are based on information supplied to NHS Pensions by employing authorities.

You then use the relevant information with HMRC's Calculate your public service pension adjustment service to determine whether previous pension tax needs changing.

Important 2026 point: the RPSS format changed

This is important if you compare your statement with older articles or screenshots online.

NHSBSA says that from 17 September 2025, its RPSS format changed and historic pension-growth figures are no longer included in the RPSS itself.

If you need the historic pension-growth figures, NHSBSA says you can access previous Pension Savings Statements for relevant earlier years.

The HMRC public-service pension adjustment service can still be used to calculate the remedy adjustment.

Therefore, a good McCloud review may need both:

Your RPSS

and

your previous PSS documents.

What should you do when an RPSS arrives?

Use this seven-stage process.

Stage 1: do not start with the tax

Start with the pension data.

Check whether the employment and pension records behind the statement appear reasonable.

Stage 2: gather your previous statements

Find the original PSS information and previous Annual Allowance calculations.

You need to understand:

What HMRC originally thought

versus

what the remedy now says.

Stage 3: check the underlying employment data

NHSBSA states RPSS calculations are based on information supplied by employing authorities.

If you believe the statement is wrong, NHSBSA advises checking the annual update information with the employing authority. (

Stage 4: recalculate affected annual allowance years

The pension input change needs to be considered alongside:

• your available Annual Allowance;
• carry forward;
• taxable income;
• tapered Annual Allowance;
• other pension arrangements.

Stage 5: compare old tax with revised tax

The remedy can create:

Refund

No change

or

additional liability.

Stage 6: correct the tax position

HMRC provides its dedicated public service pension adjustment service for McCloud corrections. (GOV.UK)

Stage 7: review Scheme Pays and compensation

If a previous Scheme Pays election is affected, or professional costs/losses have arisen because of the remedy, additional NHSBSA processes may apply.

The RPSS action dashboard

What if the figures on your RPSS look wrong?

Do not immediately assume NHSBSA has made the calculation error.

NHSBSA states that its RPSS calculation uses information submitted by your employing authority.

If the underlying annual update is wrong, the pension statement can also be wrong.

Common reasons records may deserve checking include:

A pension tax calculation is only as reliable as the data underneath it.

Who should I contact if my RPSS is wrong?

If the issue appears to relate to salary, pensionable pay or other information submitted by the employer, NHSBSA advises contacting the employing authority to check that the annual update it submitted is correct.

For GP practitioners, reconciliation may also involve PCSE and practitioner pension records rather than ordinary payroll alone.

Case file 1: McCloud reduces your previous tax charge

Suppose a consultant originally had:

After McCloud recalculation, the revised pension input becomes:

£65,000.

The excess is substantially lower.

Depending on carry forward and the original tax position, the member could be due a reduction or refund.

HMRC confirms that the public-service pension remedy can produce refunds where a previous Annual Allowance tax charge decreases.

How are McCloud annual allowance refunds paid?

The answer can depend on the tax year and who originally funded the charge.

For decreases relating to 2019/20 through 2022/23, HMRC's current guidance distinguishes between tax paid personally and tax previously funded by a pension scheme.

Where the individual originally paid the charge personally, HMRC can refund the individual.

Where the pension scheme paid the original charge, information is passed to the pension scheme so the member's pension benefits can be adjusted appropriately.

Earlier remedy-period years can involve compensation through the scheme rather than the same direct HMRC repayment mechanism.

Refund outcome table

The exact route depends on the tax year and how the original liability was paid.

Case file 2: McCloud creates a new tax charge

The opposite result is also possible.

Imagine the original pension calculation produced no Annual Allowance charge.

The revised legacy-scheme pension input after rollback is higher.

After recalculating:

The member may now have a new Annual Allowance liability.

This does not mean the £30,000 itself is the tax bill.

The actual tax charge depends on the member's tax position.

Kudos Accounting's NHS Pension Annual Allowance guide explains the underlying Annual Allowance, carry-forward and taper calculation separately so this McCloud page does not duplicate that intent.

Case file 3: you already used Scheme Pays

Suppose you previously elected Scheme Pays for an Annual Allowance charge that has now changed because of McCloud.

There are several possibilities:

The previous Scheme Pays amount was too high

or

It was too low

or

a new Scheme Pays amount is needed.

That requires the pension-tax correction and Scheme Pays record to agree.

For the broader funding decision between mandatory Scheme Pays, voluntary Scheme Pays and personal payment, use the dedicated Kudos guide:

NHS Pension Scheme Pays 2026/27

once published.

Major 2026 update: McCloud Scheme Pays deadline extended

This is one of the most important current updates in this entire article.

The Public Service Pension Schemes (Rectification of Unlawful Discrimination) (Tax) Regulations 2026 changed the remedy Scheme Pays timetable.

HMRC confirmed in July 2026 that affected active and deferred members now have until 6 July 2027 to make the relevant remedy Scheme Pays election.

This aligns their deadline with pensioner members.

If the 6 July 2027 deadline is missed, the request can become a voluntary Scheme Pays request under the remedy rules rather than the scheme becoming jointly and severally liable in the same way.

HMRC also says affected active and deferred members have until 5 July 2032 to amend a remedy Scheme Pays notice.

This is newer than older online material that may still refer to a 6 July 2025 deadline.

McCloud 2026 deadline dashboard

The exact deadline should still be checked against individual circumstances, particularly for deaths, retirement cases or unusual remedy situations.

Case file 4: your RPSS is based on incorrect employer data

Suppose a salaried GP receives an RPSS with pension growth that looks dramatically higher than expected.

The accountant compares:

• P60;
• payroll;
• pensionable salary;
• Type 2 records;
• NHS pension statement.

A mismatch appears.

In this situation, calculating tax from the incorrect RPSS would simply convert a pension-data problem into a tax problem.

The underlying employer or pensionable-earnings information needs to be investigated first.

This is particularly relevant for GP partners and salaried GPs because practitioner NHS pension reporting can involve records beyond ordinary payroll.

Kudos Accounting's specialist GP accountant service supports partnership accounts, GP pension records, Type 1/Type 2 work and associated tax calculations.

RPSS vs tax return: do you amend old Self Assessment returns normally?

Not necessarily.

McCloud has dedicated tax-correction arrangements.

HMRC provides the Calculate your public service pension adjustment service specifically to deal with remedy-related pension tax changes.

The service helps affected members work out:

• refunds;
• reduced charges;
• additional charges;
• related public-service pension adjustments.

Therefore, do not automatically start submitting ordinary amendments to multiple historic Self Assessment returns without first identifying the correct McCloud process.

What information do you need for the HMRC digital service?

The exact information depends on the member, but the review may require:

This is why McCloud cases can quickly become more complex than simply entering one number into an online calculator.

Can an accountant use HMRC's public service pension adjustment service for you?

HMRC's service allows submissions to be made on behalf of another person where the relevant requirements are met.

This is useful for clinicians whose situation involves several historic tax years, other pensions, previous Scheme Pays or changed Annual Allowance liabilities.

Kudos's NHS Pension Accountants specifically include RPSS and McCloud tax-adjustment support within the service.

NHS cost claim back scheme: can you recover accountancy costs?

Potentially.

This is a particularly useful buyer-intent point.

NHSBSA operates an NHS Cost Claim Back Scheme for certain direct financial or tax losses and qualifying professional costs caused by the public-service pension remedy.

NHSBSA says qualifying professional advice can include accountancy or independent financial advice where the remedy creates sufficient complexity and the relevant conditions are satisfied.

Current professional cost limits

NHSBSA currently states:

These are subject to the Cost Claim Back Scheme rules and eligibility requirements.

The scheme does not simply reimburse any pension or tax advice a member chooses to buy.

The professional service or financial loss must fit the scheme's conditions.

How long do you have to submit a cost claim?

NHSBSA says a claim can generally be made up to 12 months after receiving your RPSS or first Remediable Service Statement, subject to the detailed rules. (NHSBSA)

This makes the date on your statement important.

Keep it.

Do not simply save a PDF with no record of when it was received.

What can the cost claim back scheme potentially cover?

NHSBSA's rules should be reviewed before incurring expenditure on the assumption it will be refunded.

Can McCloud affect Scheme Pays interest?

Yes.

This is another area where remedy delays can matter.

NHSBSA says HM Treasury has agreed compensation can be available for certain interest incurred where a delay in receiving an RPSS directly causes a voluntary Scheme Pays payment to reach HMRC late.

Those claims are handled through the Cost Claim Back Scheme and are subject to the relevant conditions and time limit.

McCloud tax outcome map

Here is the simplest way to think about the potential outcomes.

This is why receiving an RPSS should trigger a reconciliation, not an assumption.

McCloud for NHS consultants

Consultants are particularly likely to have complex pension-tax histories because their income may include:

• NHS salary;
• additional programmed activities;
• clinical excellence awards or related payments;
• private practice;
• medico-legal income;
• other investments or pensions.

The revised pension input created by McCloud therefore needs to be considered alongside the doctor's historic taxable income, because tapered Annual Allowance rules may also have applied.

For doctors with mixed NHS and private income, Kudos's Accountants for Doctors and NHS Doctor Going Private 2026 guide provide the surrounding personal-tax and private-practice context.

McCloud for GP partners

For GP partners, the accounting records can become even more important.

The pension review may involve:

• partnership pensionable profits;
• Type 1 certificates;
• historic superannuation;
• PCSE records;
• prior Annual Allowance calculations;
• other GP income.

If historical partnership pensionable income is wrong, that can distort the pension-tax calculation.

For this reason, GP partners should reconcile the RPSS against their GP pension records rather than considering it independently from the practice accounts.

See Kudos Accounting's GP practice accountant service for wider GP pension, partnership and personal-tax support.

McCloud for salaried GPs

A salaried GP may have:

• salaried NHS employment;
• additional freelance locum income;
• other private work;
• several employers;
• private pension contributions.

The RPSS needs to be reviewed against the full employment and pension picture.

A discrepancy between payroll, NHS pension records and Type 2 reconciliation can materially affect the final result.

McCloud for NHS dentists

NHS dental professionals can also fall within the remedy where the eligibility conditions are met.

Dental pension records can involve:

• NHS pensionable earnings;
• performer arrangements;
• superannuation;
• associate income;
• annual reconciliation.

For dental-specific pension background, link readers to:

NHS Superannuation for Dental Associates: 2026 Guide

That keeps this McCloud article focused on remedy tax correction rather than duplicating dental superannuation content.

Should You Opt Out of the NHS Pension Because of McCloud?

McCloud itself is not a reason to automatically leave the NHS Pension Scheme.

The remedy is correcting historic discrimination and historical benefit/tax calculations.

Whether future NHS pension membership remains appropriate is a different long-term financial decision.

Our guide Is it worth staying in the NHS Pension Scheme? covers that broader question.

RPSS red-flag audit

Before treating an RPSS as final, check these red flags.

What should an NHS pension accountant actually check?

A proper review should not simply read the RPSS back to you.

It should connect four separate data sets.

1. Pension data

• RPSS;
• historical PSS;
• NHS pension statements;
• Scheme Pays records.

2. Income data

• P60s;
• Self Assessment;
• GP partnership income;
• private practice;
• other income relevant to taper.

3. Other pension data

• SIPP;
• private workplace pensions;
• additional pension arrangements.

4. Historic tax data

• Annual Allowance calculations;
• tax paid;
• Scheme Pays;
• HMRC submissions.

Only then can the revised McCloud tax position be meaningfully reconciled.

Original vs revised tax reconciliation table

A useful working paper can look like this:

This is much easier to audit than reading several years of statements separately.

What is an NHS RPSS?

A Remediable Pension Savings Statement provides revised pension information where the McCloud remedy changes an affected NHS Pension Scheme member's historical Annual Allowance position.

The information can then be used with HMRC's public-service pension adjustment service to establish whether previous tax needs correcting.

Does receiving an RPSS mean I owe tax?

No.

An RPSS means the remedy has produced pension information that needs to be considered for Annual Allowance purposes.

The revised result could create:

• more tax;
• less tax;
• a refund;
• no change.

The final result depends on Annual Allowance, carry forward, taper and other pension savings.

Can McCloud give me an annual allowance tax refund?

Yes, potentially.

Where the remedy reduces a historic Annual Allowance charge, HMRC or the pension scheme can have a refund or benefit-adjustment role depending on the year and who originally paid the tax.

What if My RPSS Is Wrong?

Check the underlying employment data first.

NHSBSA states RPSS figures are calculated using information supplied by employing authorities and advises members who believe information is incorrect to contact the employing authority to check its annual update.

Do I need my old pension savings statements?

They can be very useful.

Since 17 September 2025, NHSBSA's revised RPSS format no longer includes historic pension-growth figures.

NHSBSA says historic figures can instead be viewed through previous Pension Savings Statements where relevant.

How do I tell HMRC about a McCloud pension tax change?

HMRC provides the Calculate your public service pension adjustment service specifically for remedy-related corrections.

It can be used to work out refunds, reduced charges or new/additional tax arising from the public-service pension remedy.

What is the McCloud Scheme Pays deadline now?

Following the 2026 tax regulations, affected active and deferred members have until 6 July 2027 for relevant McCloud remedy Scheme Pays elections.

This now aligns with pensioner members.

Affected members can generally amend relevant notices until 5 July 2032, subject to the detailed rules.

Can I claim my accountant's RPSS fees back?

Potentially.

The NHS Cost Claim Back Scheme can reimburse certain qualifying professional costs arising because of the remedy.

NHSBSA currently states that accountancy services connected with use of HMRC's digital remedy service can be reimbursed up to £1,000 including VAT per piece of advice, where the scheme conditions are satisfied.

How long do I have to claim McCloud professional costs?

NHSBSA says Cost Claim Back applications can generally be made within 12 months of receiving the RPSS or first Remediable Service Statement, subject to the full scheme rules.

McCloud RPSS document checklist

Before asking an accountant to review the position, try to gather:

You do not necessarily need every document before making initial contact.

The Kudos NHS Pension Accountants page explains the wider document-review process for NHS pension cases.

When is specialist help most valuable?

The McCloud digital process may be relatively straightforward for some members.

Specialist accounting help becomes more valuable when:

• several historic years changed;
• you previously paid Annual Allowance tax;
• Scheme Pays was used;
• you have private pension savings;
• tapered Annual Allowance applied;
• you have several NHS roles;
• GP practitioner records are involved;
• pension records appear wrong;
• you have private practice income;
• an RPSS creates an unexpected large liability;
• you are close to a remedy deadline.

NHSBSA itself recognises that while most members should be able to use the supplied information and HMRC service without professional advice, a minority with more complex situations may require an accountant or independent financial adviser. That is also why the Cost Claim Back Scheme exists.

How Kudos Accounting supports McCloud and RPSS cases

Kudos Accounting's NHS Pension Accountants for Doctors and GPs service already includes:

• RPSS review;
• McCloud tax recalculation;
• Pension Savings Statement review;
• Annual Allowance calculations;
• carry forward;
• tapered Annual Allowance;
• Scheme Pays calculations;
• associated Self Assessment support;
• GP pension reconciliation;
• Type 1 and Type 2 review.

The strongest internal-link path from this blog is:

McCloud/RPSS problem

→ NHS Pension Accountants

→ NHS Pension Annual Allowance Guide

→ NHS Scheme Pays Guide

→ Personal Tax for Healthcare

That sends both users and search engines through the correct pension-tax hierarchy rather than creating several competing pages.

Final action plan

An RPSS should trigger a review, not panic and not an automatic tax payment.

The process is:

Check whether McCloud applies

→ verify your pension/employment records

→ compare your RPSS with historical PSS data

→ recalculate affected Annual Allowance years

→ apply carry forward and taper correctly

→ compare tax originally paid with revised liability

→ use HMRC's public-service pension adjustment process

→ correct Scheme Pays where necessary

→ review Cost Claim Back eligibility

That final step is often overlooked.

A complex McCloud case can require several hours of historic pension and tax reconciliation, but NHSBSA specifically provides a mechanism for qualifying members to recover certain professional costs caused by the remedy.

The objective is not simply to “process the RPSS”.

It is to ensure your:

NHS pension record

Annual allowance calculation

HMRC tax position

and

Scheme Pays record

all tell the same story.

For healthcare professionals with multiple NHS roles, private income, historic Annual Allowance charges or previous Scheme Pays elections, that reconciliation can materially affect both current tax and future pension benefits.

If your RPSS has arrived and the figures are unclear, a specialist NHS pension accountant at Kudos Accounting can review the pension and tax information together before you submit a remedy adjustment.

Practical answers for NHS doctors, GP partners, salaried GPs and other healthcare professionals reviewing a Remediable Pension Savings Statement or correcting a McCloud-related tax position.

Frequently asked questions

Received an RPSS? check the numbers before you correct the tax

Your revised pension statement is only one part of the calculation. The pension data, previous Annual Allowance position, carry forward, tax paid and any Scheme Pays election all need to reconcile before the final McCloud adjustment is submitted.

Get your RPSS, annual allowance and tax position reviewed together

Kudos Accounting supports doctors, consultants, GP partners and other healthcare professionals with McCloud RPSS reviews, Annual Allowance calculations, Scheme Pays and associated tax corrections. Learn more about our specialist NHS Pension Accountant service.