Pension reforms

From next year, employers will begin to be required to ensure that all their workers are automatically enrolled in a pension scheme, and any such scheme will have to meet certain minimum requirements. There also will be a new obligation for employers to make a contribution to the scheme. You will need to plan for the changes and budget for the costs.

Those employers who already offer a pension scheme may have nothing to do if it meets the minimum requirements and all employees are automatically enrolled, or they may have to change its rules and systems to comply. Those employers, of all sizes, who currently offer no pension scheme will have to make arrangements to do so. The requirements are being phased in between 2012 and 2016, so that you have adequate time to prepare.  Employers need not wait until the new rules make pension provision compulsory.

The choice of scheme is open, but the Government has sponsored the creation of the National Employment Savings Trust (NEST), which is a national money purchase pension plan that meets all the requirements at a low cost, so that even the smallest employers can find a way to comply in a simple manner.

To see how the rules might apply to you, view our outline of the new requirements.