Updated October 22, 2026. Quick answer: UC’s retirement plan documents say an active UCRP member can buy service credit for approved leaves, for UCRP service whose accumulations were refunded, and to eliminate noncontributory offsets. For approved leaves other than parental leave, medical leave and sabbaticals, which the guide calls Restricted, the member needs at least five years of active participation in UCRP and can buy at most five years, unless paying by a trustee-to-trustee transfer from a UC 403(b) or 457(b) plan. The purchase is irrevocable, and within three years of returning from a leave the cost is generally figured with the Plan Normal Cost Rate method.
What this covers
The 1976 Tier summary has a section headed “Service Credit Purchase”, and UC publishes a separate “UCRP Service Credit Purchase Guide”. This page quotes both. For the wider choices, see UCRP retirement decisions and public pension retirement decisions. For the general question of whether buying credit pays, see whether buying service credit is worth it and the pension buyback calculator.
What can be bought
Each row is the summary’s own wording.
| Type | What the summary says |
|---|---|
| Approved leaves | “Approved leave without pay; partially paid sabbatical leave; extended sick leave; temporary layoff or furlough (except during a partial-year career appointment);” |
| Previous UCRP membership | “UCRP service for which a refund of accumulations was received; or” |
| Noncontributory offsets | “The noncontributory offset, which affects many who were members during the period July 1, 1966, through June 30, 1971;” |
| Who may buy | “The service credit purchase option is available only to active UCRP members.” The purchase guide adds: “You must be an active UCRP member, on pay status at UC, to elect a service credit purchase.” “You must be on active UC pay status until you’ve completed your payments.” |
| Restricted leaves (purchase guide) | “For all other types of approved leave, which are considered Restricted, you must have at least five years of active participation in UCRP and you are limited to purchasing five years of service credit.” The unrestricted leaves, with “no limit to the amount of service credit you can purchase”, are parental leave, medical leave and sabbaticals. “If you pay for a Restricted Purchase Leave with a trustee-to-trustee transfer from a UC 403(b) or 457(b) plan”, the guide says, “the limitations don’t apply to you.” |
What cannot be bought
“A SERVICE CREDIT PURCHASE IS NOT AVAILABLE FOR:” The list includes:
- “Any break-in-service period”
- “Any period of CalPERS membership”
- “Any period of service that preceded a lump-sum cashout”
- “Any period of less than four weeks, unless necessary for vesting purposes”
- “A CAP distribution”
It cannot be undone
“Once you make the commitment to start a service credit purchase, you can’t cancel it unless you leave UC, and you can’t change the amount of the payments.” “It’s not possible to get a refund of any of your service credit purchase payments as an active employee.”
How the cost is set
“In most cases, if you elect the service credit purchase within three years of returning from your leave, your cost will be calculated using what’s called the Plan Normal Cost Rate method.” “If you elect a service credit purchase after three years, your cost will be based on the Individual Actuarial Cost.” “In general, the Individual Actuarial Cost method produces higher costs than the Plan Normal Cost Rate method.” The Plan Text also prices a large purchase on the actuarial basis. Section 5.04(d)(ii)(D) says “The cost of the purchase of any Service Credit that exceeds 24 months shall reflect the actuarially determined cost to the Plan for such Service Credit based on the Member’s individual life expectancy as calculated under mortality tables that reflect the experience of the general population that purchases annuities.”
The guide’s own example, recomputed
For a 1976 Tier member the guide prints a two year purchase within the three year window. The figures below are the guide’s, and the product is recomputed here with the formula the guide prints, “12 months x $5,500 x 20.95% x 2 years”.
| Line | Figure |
|---|---|
| Salary rate at time of leave (monthly) | $5,500 |
| Normal Cost Rate | 20.95% |
| Service credit | 2 years |
| 12 months x $5,500 x 20.95% x 2 years | $27,654 (recomputed: 12 x 5,500 = 66,000; x .2095 = 13,827; x 2 = 27,654) |
| Interest @ 6.75%, estimate only | $730 |
| Estimated total, Plan Normal Cost Rate method | $28,384 |
The guide’s table also prints a cost beyond the window for the same leave: “12 months x $6,200 x 35.66% x 2 years”, recomputed here as 12 x 6,200 = 74,400; x .3566 = 26,531.04; x 2 = 53,062.08, which the guide prints as $53,062. Same two years of credit, roughly double the cost for waiting.
Disability and service credit bought for a leave
A purchase for an unpaid leave has a limit on one benefit. The summary says “Any service credit that was purchased for an unpaid leave period is not” included in determining eligibility for disability benefits.
What the sources do not say
The documents do not price a purchase for any other tier, and the cost depends on your own salary and dates. The guide itself says “we strongly encourage you to speak with a benefits counselor and your tax advisor before beginning a service credit purchase.”
Edition
This page reads the University of California Retirement Plan (UCRP), 1976 Tier Summary Plan Description and, for purchases, the University of California Retirement Plan (UCRP) Service Credit Purchase Guide, both files the University of California served on 2026-10-22. UC publishes separate summaries for other membership groups (the 2016 Tier, the 2013 Tier and others), which this page does not read, and the plan document and your own UCRP record control over any summary.
Common mistakes
- Buying a break in service. The summary excludes “Any break-in-service period”.
- Waiting past three years and expecting the same price. The guide says “In general, the Individual Actuarial Cost method produces higher costs than the Plan Normal Cost Rate method.”
- Counting a leave purchase toward disability eligibility. The summary says purchased unpaid leave credit is not included in determining eligibility for disability benefits.
Related: UCRP retirement decisions, public pension retirement decisions, whether buying service credit is worth it, and pension buyback calculator.
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Answer againSources
- University of California Retirement Plan (UCRP), 1976 Tier Summary Plan Description: ucnet.universityofcalifornia.edu
- University of California Retirement Plan (UCRP) Service Credit Purchase Guide: ucnet.universityofcalifornia.edu
- Related official page (not quoted): IRS, Topic no. 410, Pensions and annuities: www.irs.gov
- Related official page (not quoted): IRS, Topic no. 558, Additional tax on early distributions: www.irs.gov
Read from the pension system handbooks linked above on October 22, 2026. General information, not tax advice. Your own facts decide the outcome, and a pension system or a qualified professional is the right place to confirm anything consequential.