Alternate Retirement Option (ARO)

Are you nearing retirement or have you just recently retired? Do you still have a passion for policing and serving the community? During the build phase of Surrey Police Service (SPS), we are providing a unique opportunity for eligible experienced officers to continue their policing careers, while starting their pension with the Municipal Pension Plan (MPP).

SPS’s Alternate Retirement Option (ARO) provides eligible officers with a rewarding way to continue their careers in policing, while allowing SPS to benefit from their significant policing experience and expertise.

How ARO works

ARO supports you in retiring at the end of one month and continuing your employment with SPS on your Pension Commencement Date (the first of the next month) with no change to your pay, benefits, seniority, leave entitlements, or tenure eligibility. Once you retire under ARO, you stop contributing to MPP and SPS pays you a premium on eligible hours worked equivalent to what SPS would have contributed to MPP on your behalf. Alternatively, if you recently retired from your previous agency and are collecting your pension with MPP, you may be eligible for the APO premium if you are hired at SPS as a sworn police officer.

Note: Experienced officers who are not members of MPP (out of province and RCMP officers) may or may not be eligible for ARO. Further information on eligibility for ARO is included in the FAQs below.

How you benefit from ARO

You will be continuing to contribute your policing skills by joining a community that welcomes your experience and commitment. SPS will provide you with a policing position as a regular sworn member, training, and other opportunities to support your well-being and success. Financially, you will benefit as you’ll start your MPP pension (or continue collecting your MPP pension) while receiving full pay and benefits from SPS, as well as the additional ARO premium.

How SPS and Surrey benefit from ARO

SPS is continuing to grow as we move towards becoming Surrey’s police of jurisdiction on November 29, 2024. As we staff up, it is important that we hire officers with a range of experience levels to support knowledge transfer and succession planning for decades to come. As a police officer with experience, you will use your expertise to serve Surrey residents while mentoring officers who are earlier in their careers.