Before 2012, there was no general requirement for employers to either:

1. •

   make contributions in respect of their employees, or

2. •

   make retirement scheme provision for their employees

The introduction of the auto-enrolment regime in 2012 altered this general picture, and employers subject to the auto-enrolment legislation are required to contribute to employees’ pension arrangements in accordance with the requirements of that legislation. For further information on the minimum employer contribution rates, see Practice Note: Auto-enrolment—what types of scheme may be used?

In view of the nature of defined contribution (DC) pension schemes and particularly the fact that the retirement benefits ultimately provided by such schemes depend partly on the contributions paid to them, it is unsurprising that there has been a growing emphasis on the prompt and accurate payment of contributions to such schemes. For further information on DC schemes, see Types of pension arrangements for employees and Money purchase benefits—the statutory definition.