An earmarking order is an order by the court that an ex-spouse or civil partner in a divorce receives part or all of the pension of their former partner. Pension earmarking is also known as pension attachment.

Earmarking orders do not include their former spouse or civil partner’s state pension.

An earmarking order means that there is no clean break in the divorce, as there is an ongoing link with your ex-spouse or civil partner. The earmarking order can require that the ex-partner receives all or part of the member’s pension income, as a lump sum (possibly tax-free) when the member dies.