1 million SME owners reminded of auto-enrolment staging dates

The Pensions Regulator is writing to over a million small and micro business owners with auto-enrolment staging dates between May 2016 and August 2017 to remind them of when their new workplace duties begin.

The reminders will include vital information such as the date the law applies and how they can nominate a contact with The Pensions Regulator.

Recent research from The Pensions Regulator found that the majority of small and micro employers agree that auto-enrolment for employee pension schemes is a ‘good idea’. 86 per cent of small and three-quarters (75 per cent) of micro employers believe workplace pensions are important for the financial security of their workforce.

Around five million UK workers are now automatically enrolled into a pension scheme; but while it’s automatic for staff it’s not automatic for employers who must plan and prepare for the steps they need to take in order to comply with the law and avoid any financial penalties.

Late last year, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) responded to a consultation which reviewed the earnings thresholds for auto-enrolment into a workplace pension for April 2015 to March 2016.

The DWP proposes to lay a draft Revision Order before Parliament in early 2015 which specifies the following amounts:

• £5,824 for the lower limit of the qualifying earnings band

• £42,385 for the upper limit of the qualifying earnings band

Employers use the amount someone earns between the lower and upper qualifying bands to calculate how much that person must pay into a workplace pension.

The amount someone must earn to be automatically enrolled into a workplace pension will remain at £10,000 per annum.

The Pensions Regulator has created a host of audio resources on YouTube designed to give employers advice on the following topics:

• Introduction to automatic enrolment - Part one and Part two
• Staging dates
• Who is a worker?

Date published 27 Jan 2015 | Last updated 27 Jan 2015