Pension Divorce Calculator (UK)
Pensions are often the second-biggest asset in a divorce — sometimes bigger than the family home — and the most frequently miscalculated. Enter both Cash Equivalent Transfer Values (CETVs) below to compare a court Pension Sharing Order percentage (Form P1) against cash-equivalent offsetting against house equity or savings.
1. Pension CETVs
Combine the Cash Equivalent Transfer Values across your workplace & personal pensions (Form E section 2.13)
Use the official CETV from their provider — not the annual statement 'fund value'
2. Other Assets for Offsetting (Optional)
Add house equity and savings if one of you wants to keep their pension and trade it against the home or cash.
Combined cash and non-pension investments
Loans, credit cards and tax liabilities (excluding the mortgage)
3. Cash-Equivalent Offset Discount
These are illustrative assumptions, not a valuation or a recommended settlement. A 15%–30% adjustment can model particular retirement tax assumptions. It is not a universal rule, and a CETV may not be a suitable starting value for a defined-benefit pension.
Combined Pension & Pot Summary
Section 2.13 CETV basisPension Sharing Order Calculator (Form P1)
What if you offset against the house or cash instead?
75% cash-equivIf nobody touches the pensions, trading the £0 CETV transfer for upfront house equity or cash equals £0 at a 25% illustrative adjustment (illustrative 70%–85% range: £0 – £0). Add house equity and savings on the left to see whether a full offset fits.
Sharing vs offsetting side by side
Compare a clean-break Pension Sharing Order against discounted offsetting — and see why £1 of pension is not £1 of cash.
Pension sharing order
Your pensions already match the split you are modelling, so neither side needs a pension sharing annex.
Cash-equivalent offset (75%)
Values £1 of pension CETV at 75p of today's cash (25% discount). Add house equity and savings on the left to test whether a full offset fits.
Face-value comparison (no adjustment)
A face-value comparison does not allow for tax, scheme benefits or timing. Whether an adjustment is appropriate depends on the circumstances; this calculator does not value pension benefits.
What to double-check
Enter at least one pension CETV above and any scheme-specific warnings will appear here.
Pension paperwork to request early
CETVs are the slowest part of Form E disclosure — request these before anything else.
Get your pension split PDF
FreeReceive a printable PDF comparing your Form P1 pension sharing percentage against cash-equivalent offsetting, plus the CETV & BR19/BR20 checklist.
Ready to put your pension CETVs into formal disclosure?
Review your own pension figures before adding them to Form E.
Method: the tool compares CETV amounts and an adjustment you choose. It does not equalise retirement incomes or value defined-benefit pension rights. Pension Advisory Group guidance separates valuation, tax and any adjustment for receiving money now. The 25% starting adjustment is an example, not a recommended outcome.
Read the Pension Advisory Group guide, Part 7 · Official State Pension valuation guidance
How a UK pension divorce calculation actually works
There is no single statutory “pension divorce formula” in England and Wales, because family courts look at retirement income and overall section 25 needs rather than mechanical arithmetic alone. Even so, every sound pension split follows the same three steps:
- Value each pension using its official CETV (Cash Equivalent Transfer Value) — never the “fund value” printed on a routine annual statement.
- Bring all pensions into the matrimonial pot alongside net family home equity, savings and debts.
- Choose the right legal mechanism: a pension sharing order, discounted offsetting against property or cash, or (rarely) a pension attachment order.
Step 1: Value each pension with a CETV (and spot the final-salary trap)
A CETV is the capital sum your pension scheme calculates would be transferred out if you moved the pot today. It is the mandatory valuation figure required in section 2.13 of Form E. Active and deferred members are entitled to one free CETV every 12 months, though schemes have up to three months to issue it — so requesting CETVs should be the very first item on your Form E documents checklist.
Defined-contribution (DC) pots
Workplace auto-enrolment pots and SIPPs hold invested money. Their CETV is usually identical (or very close) to the invested fund value unless exit charges or guaranteed annuity rates apply.
Defined-benefit (DB) & public-sector schemes
NHS, Teachers, Civil Service, Police, Armed Forces, LGPS and corporate final-salary schemes promise an inflation-linked income for life. Their CETVs often materially undervalue what it would cost to buy that same income on the open market — which is why PODE reports equalise retirement income rather than raw CETVs.
Step 2: Put pensions into the matrimonial pot
In England and Wales, pensions built up during the marriage (including seamless pre-marital cohabitation) are matrimonial assets regardless of whose name is on the policy. The starting point is equal sharing of the matrimonial pot, cross-checked against both spouses' housing and retirement needs.
The classic DIY mistake is splitting the house 50/50, splitting bank accounts 50/50, and agreeing “we'll each keep our own pensions” without checking the CETVs — quietly handing a £150,000+ windfall to whichever spouse worked full-time while the other took career breaks for childcare.
Step 3: Sharing vs offsetting vs attachment
1. Pension Sharing Order (Form P1)
A court order carves out an exact percentage of one person's pension and creates an independent pension credit in the ex-spouse's own name (either inside the existing scheme as a “shadow member” or transferred out to a personal pension). It delivers a true clean break and protects retirement income regardless of when the ex-spouse retires or dies. Read our full guide to how a Pension Sharing Order works.
2. Pension Offsetting
One spouse keeps most or all of their pension, while the other keeps a larger share of liquid capital — most commonly equity in the family home. Offsetting helps fund a house buyout today, but it carries two risks: trading “apples and pears” without a tax/utility discount, and leaving the home-keeping spouse asset-rich today but short of income in retirement.
3. Pension Attachment Order (earmarking)
Redirects part of the pension income or lump sum to the ex-spouse when the member eventually retires. Attachment orders are now rare because there is no clean break, you do not control when your ex retires, and payments normally stop if the pension holder dies or you remarry.
How tax and valuation assumptions affect pension offsetting
Comparing a £100,000 pension CETV directly against £100,000 of house equity is the single biggest numerical mistake in divorce negotiations:
- Tax on the way out: Typically only 25% of a defined-contribution pension can be drawn tax-free (up to the lump sum allowance), with the remaining 75% taxed at the recipient's marginal income tax rate. Main-home equity and ISA balances are tax-free.
- Illiquidity (“utility”): Pension funds are locked away until minimum pension age (55, rising to 57 in April 2028) and cannot clear a mortgage or put down a deposit today.
PAG guidance describes 15% and 30% as illustrative tax adjustments under particular assumptions about tax-free cash and retirement income tax. This tool starts with a 25% example adjustment which you can change. It does not establish the right pension valuation or an appropriate adjustment for your circumstances.
Worked example: Sam & Alex's £380,000 pot
Suppose Sam and Alex are divorcing after a 14-year marriage and want an equal 50/50 division of their matrimonial assets:
| Asset | Value |
|---|---|
| Family home net equity (after mortgage & sale costs) | £150,000 |
| Joint savings | £30,000 |
| Sam's defined-contribution pension (CETV) | £180,000 |
| Alex's defined-contribution pension (CETV) | £20,000 |
| Total matrimonial pot (face value) | £380,000 |
- Route A — Pension Sharing Order: Combined pensions are £200,000 (£100,000 each). Sam transfers £80,000 CETV into a pension for Alex — written on Form P1 as a 44.4% pension sharing order against Sam's £180,000 scheme. House equity and savings (£180,000) split £90,000 each. Both walk away with £90,000 liquid capital and £100,000 pension.
- Route B — Cash-Equivalent Offsetting (75% factor): Applying a 25% discount values Sam's £180,000 pension at £135,000 cash-equivalent and Alex's £20,000 pension at £15,000, making the adjusted pot £330,000 (£165,000 each). Alex keeps the entire £150,000 family home equity plus her £20,000 pension (£15,000 cash-equivalent = £165,000 total); Sam keeps all £30,000 savings plus his £180,000 pension (£135,000 cash-equivalent = £165,000 total). Without the 25% discount, a naive £1-for-£1 swap would have demanded £170,000 of cash for Alex — £20,000 more than this illustrative adjusted scenario.
What about the State Pension (forms BR19 & BR20)?
The main new State Pension cannot be shared, but a protected payment may be shareable. Under the old system, Additional State Pension may be shareable. The rules depend on State Pension age and when proceedings began. Request a divorce valuation using BR20/BR20NSP; BR19 provides a forecast, not a divorce valuation. Leaving it blank is a frequent stumbling block — see our Form E Additional State Pension (BR19/BR20) guide.
Where Form E fits in — and when to instruct a PODE
Whether you negotiate in mediation, through solicitors or in court proceedings, every non-State pension must be disclosed in section 2.13 of Form E alongside official CETV evidence, before your final agreement is sealed in a consent order and Statement of Information (D81). Divvio's guided online Form E walks you through section 2.13 scheme by scheme (also explained in our complete Form E guide).
Consider instructing a single joint Pensions on Divorce Expert (PODE) whenever any scheme is defined-benefit or public-sector, combined CETVs exceed roughly £100,000, there is a significant age gap between spouses, or a scheme carries guaranteed annuity rates. The appropriate level of expert input depends on the schemes and circumstances; £100,000 is not an official threshold.
Frequently asked questions
Is there an official UK pension divorce calculator?+
No. Courts in England and Wales do not apply a rigid statutory formula — they weigh all circumstances under section 25 of the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973. Calculators like this one show the two standard ways pensions are divided in practice (a percentage Pension Sharing Order vs discounted cash-equivalent offsetting) so you can prepare for mediation or solicitor advice.
How is the Pension Sharing Order percentage worked out?+
A court Pension Sharing Order must specify a percentage of the transferring member's CETV on Form P1 rather than a fixed cash figure. For example, if one spouse has a £180,000 CETV and the other has £20,000 (total £200,000), equalising CETVs at £100,000 each transfers £80,000 — which is 44.4% of the £180,000 pension.
Why is £1 of pension not worth £1 of cash or house equity when offsetting?+
Pension funds cannot usually be accessed until minimum pension age (55, rising to 57 in April 2028) and 75% of withdrawals are typically subject to income tax, whereas equity in a main home or ISA cash is tax-free and usable immediately. A 15% to 30% adjustment can illustrate particular retirement tax assumptions. It is not a universal offsetting rule: the pension valuation, tax and any adjustment for timing must be considered separately, particularly for defined-benefit pensions.
Why can defined-benefit or public-sector CETVs be misleading?+
In NHS, Teacher, Civil Service, Police, Armed Forces and corporate final-salary schemes, the published CETV often understates what it would cost on the open market to buy the same guaranteed, inflation-linked retirement income. Equalising CETVs alone can leave one person with significantly lower retirement income, which is why a Pensions on Divorce Expert (PODE) report is frequently recommended.
Do we split pensions built up before the marriage or after separation?+
Pensions built up before the marriage (or after separation) are often argued to be non-matrimonial where the overall pot exceeds both parties' needs, especially after shorter marriages. However, where retirement income or housing needs require it, courts in England and Wales can and do share the whole pension regardless of when it was accrued.
Can the State Pension be shared in a divorce?+
The main new State Pension cannot be shared, but a protected payment may be shareable. Under the old State Pension system, Additional State Pension may be shareable. The applicable rules depend on State Pension age and when divorce proceedings began. Request a divorce valuation using BR20/BR20NSP; BR19 is a forecast, not a divorce valuation.
Can we split a pension without going to court?+
You can negotiate the percentage between yourselves or in mediation, but a pension provider cannot legally split a pension without a sealed court Pension Sharing Order and Pension Sharing Annex (Form P1) — usually obtained on paper via an agreed financial consent order without attending a hearing.
Where do pensions go on Form E?+
All workplace and personal pensions (excluding the basic/new State Pension) are declared in section 2.13 of Form E using each scheme's official Cash Equivalent Transfer Value (CETV), with supporting CETV documentation attached to the Schedule of Documents.
Written by
Ben Ayade
Founder of Divvio · Called to the Bar of England & Wales
Last updated
Updated 1 November 2026
Reviewed and refreshed when the article or guide is materially updated.
Why Divvio is qualified to help
- Divvio is built specifically for Form E and financial remedy workflows in England & Wales.
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- This content is reviewed against the same explanations and workflows surfaced inside the app.
Turn your CETVs into a court-ready Form E
Answer plain-English questions for section 2.13 pensions, property, bank accounts and income needs — and export the official HMCTS Form E PDF when you're ready.