Additional voluntary contributions (AVCs) definition

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Basic scheme information from 6 April 2014—checklist

Basic scheme information from 6 April 2014—checklist THIS CHECKLIST APPLIES TO OCCUPATIONAL PENSION SCHEMES ON AND FROM 6 APRIL 2014 For information on the requirement to provide basic scheme information before 6 April 2014, see Practice Note: Occupational pension schemes—disclosure requirements before 6 April 2014—Basic scheme information (ARCHIVED) and Checklist: Basic scheme information before 6 April 2014—checklist [Archived]. Basic scheme information requirement Under the Occupational and Personal Pension Schemes (Disclosure of Information) Regulations 2013, SI 2013/2734 (the 2013 Disclosure Regulations), trustees of occupational pension schemes must provide basic scheme information to: • prospective members, and • members who have not already received such information within one month of the scheme receiving their jobholder information or, if no such information has been received, within two months of them joining the scheme. Basic scheme information must also be given at the request of any of the following persons: • a member or prospective member • their spouse or civil partner • a scheme beneficiary, or • a recognised trade union (ie a...

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Winding up an occupational pension scheme—the statutory priority order

Winding up an occupational pension scheme—the statutory priority order THIS PRACTICE NOTE APPLIES TO DEFINED BENEFIT OCCUPATIONAL PENSION SCHEMES When an underfunded defined benefit occupational pension scheme winds up, trustees must secure members' benefits by applying the scheme's assets towards meeting its liabilities in accordance with the statutory priority order set out in the Pensions Act 1995, s 73. The statutory priority order overrides any priority order contained in a scheme's governing documentation. The statutory priority order has undergone a number of changes since 6 April 1997, when it was first introduced, and varies according to the date on which a scheme commenced winding up. The current statutory priority order set out in the Pensions Act 1995, s 73, applies to schemes that began to wind up on or after 6 April 2005. Schemes that began to wind up before 6 April 2005 should check previous versions of the legislation to ensure that they are applying the correct priority order. A different statutory priority order applies for schemes...

Normal minimum pension age and protected pension age

Normal minimum pension age and protected pension age FORTHCOMING DEVELOPMENT: Section 10 of the Finance Act 2022 will increase the normal minimum pension age (NMPA) from 55 to 57 on 6 April 2028 (save for members of the firefighters, police and armed forces public service pension schemes). The Finance Act 2022 will also give members of registered pension schemes a right to take their benefits before age 57, if on or before 4 November 2021 they either had an ‘unqualified right’ to take benefits or were in the process of a substantive transfer to a scheme offering an unqualified right to a protected pension age of less than 57 on or before 4 November 2021. To benefit from this new 2028 protection, the rules of the pension scheme must have included (on 11 February 2021) an unqualified right to take the entitlement to scheme benefits before age 57. For further information, see Practice Note: Increasing the normal minimum pension age (NMPA) to 57—pensions impact. Normal...

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If an employer agrees to make lump sum payments in respect of unpaid holiday and sick pay, can the employee opt to have these paid by way of employer pension contributions?

If an employer agrees to make lump sum payments in respect of unpaid holiday and sick pay, can the employee opt to have these paid by way of employer pension contributions? For information on the right to statutory paid holiday under the Working Time Regulations 1998, SI 1998/1833 generally, and how it is calculated, see Practice Notes: Statutory paid holiday—the right and Statutory paid holiday—calculating holiday pay. For information on remedies for non-payment of statutory sick pay (SSP) and contractual sick pay, see the section: ‘Remedies’ of Practice Note: Sick pay. If an employee brings an unlawful deduction from wages claim under section 23 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 (ERA 1996) in respect of unpaid holiday pay (or contractual sick pay), and the claim succeeds, the tribunal must make a declaration in the worker's favour and order that the employer pays the sums that were deducted (ERA 1996, s 24(1)). See: • Practice Note: Statutory paid holiday—enforcement and claims, and • the section: 'Remedies' of Practice Note:...

Is a pension scheme obliged to produce a chair’s statement where all scheme benefits are defined benefits apart from money purchase benefits provided in respect of Additional Voluntary Contributions (AVCs) and benefits provided in respect of a transfer in where the transfer value has been invested in the scheme’s AVC fund to provide money purchase benefits?

Is a pension scheme obliged to produce a chair’s statement where all scheme benefits are defined benefits apart from money purchase benefits provided in respect of Additional Voluntary Contributions (AVCs) and benefits provided in respect of a transfer in where the transfer value has been invested in the scheme’s AVC fund to provide money purchase benefits? As described in Practice Note: The DC chair's statement—the pension requirements, the requirement to produce a chair’s statement applies to ‘relevant schemes’. The legislative definition of ‘relevant scheme’ (found in the Occupational Pension Schemes (Scheme Administration) Regulations 1996, SI 1996/1715, reg 1(2) and introduced by the Occupational Pension Schemes (Charges and Governance) Regulations 2015, SI 2015/879) makes it clear that a ‘scheme which provides no money purchase benefits other than benefits which are attributable to additional voluntary contributions’ (AVCs) is not a relevant scheme. Accordingly, a scheme whose only money purchase benefits are those falling within limb (a) of your question (ie money purchase benefits provided in respect of AVCs)...

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Pensions weekly highlights—15 May 2025

This week's edition of Pensions weekly highlights includes a review of key news stories, as well as dates for your diary and trackers.

PO determination on employer liability for uncollected AVCs (Mr W Cunningham PO-86)

Pensions analysis: The Deputy Pensions Ombudsman upheld a complaint that a member had suffered loss as a result of a failure to collect AVCs and had relied on benefit statements which had mistakenly reported his pension position. Wyn Derbyshire of gunnercooke LLP looks at the decision.