Simple pension transfers took an average time of 10.2 days to complete in 2025, down from 10.5 days the previous year, according to the latest data from Origo.

Simple transfers account for almost 90 per cent of all transfers on the Origo Transfer Service, and relate to a company’s performance when they have more control over the process for relatively straightforward pension assets moving away from their business.

The overall pension transfer time, including the more complex transfers where providers may need further information from third parties, averaged 11.4 days in 2025, down from 12.3 days in 2024.

Around 1.7 million transfers were completed across the Origo Transfer Index group last year, up from 1.5 million in 2024.

The combined value of transfers increased from around £66bn in 2024 to approximately £75bn in 2025.

The data comes from the Origo Transfer Index, which tracks the pension transfer times of nearly 30 voluntary participants from its pension transfer service.

Performance is measured on how long it takes the ceding provider to transfer the request, including any due diligence and divestment of funds before sending the customer’s money to the acquiring provider.

Firms that publish their transfer times as part of the Origo Transfer Index make up more than 90 per cent of all completed transfers by volume on the Origo Transfer Service over the year.

Origo’s Transfer Service accounts for more than 80 per cent of all defined contribution pension transfers in the UK market.

“The pension industry has been dealing with more and more pension transfers in recent years as volumes increase,” said Origo CEO, Anthony Rafferty.

“And there was also plenty of volatility around in 2025 created by unprecedented Budget speculation and unpredictable geopolitics.

“Against this backdrop, it’s really encouraging to see that pension transfer times have continued to speed up despite these ongoing pressures.

“All this means the sector is starting off 2026 in a really strong position to continue delivering fast turnaround times for transfers, even as we head into what looks set to be another busy year as advisers and clients prepare for major changes to inheritance tax on pensions.

“While these new rules don’t come into effect until April 2027, it will be interesting to see if and how transfer volumes and values are impacted over the year as people consider their options. Nevertheless, we expect transfer times to hold up very well despite any challenges 2026 has in store.”

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