Preparing for your new workplace pension

If you’re a UK business who employs at least one member of staff then auto enrolment affects you. It’s important to understand your workplace pension duties and who is eligible ahead of your auto enrolment staging date so that you have enough time to prepare your business.

Planning ahead can make all the difference. Here’s where you should start:

Know your auto enrolment staging date

Go to the Pensions Regulator’s website and enter your PAYE reference.

Familiarise yourself with the legislation

Make sure you’re equipped with the information you need to stay compliant; our auto enrolment training can help you with this. You can also download our free auto enrolment guide to find out what to do in the run up to your staging date.

Understand the costs to your business

In addition to all of the admin work you’ll also need to prepare for the financial impact of setting-up the new workplace pension. Find out how our software can help keep the costs down for you.

Review the eligibility of your workforce

Employees who qualify for auto enrolment are those who are between 22 and state pension age, earning over £9,440 each year and who work in the UK. Some eligible employees may decide they don’t want to contribute towards a workplace pension and must actively opt out. Similarly, not all of your employees will be eligible for auto enrolment but may still be able to opt in to a pension scheme, in which case you will be obliged to enrol them. The rules and requirements on contributions for these employees will be different and you might not need to make an employer’s contribution for them.

Communicate with your employees

Make sure you have all the correct contact details for them. You’ll need to tell them about the new workplace pension scheme, their rights and how this may affect their take-home pay to manage their expectations well ahead of time. The Pensions Regulator website offers letter templates to help. Read our article on common employee questions and find out how to answer them.

Assess new employees

As well as assessing your entire workforce for your auto enrolment staging date, you will need to then assess each new employee on the day they start working for you. You will also need to assess existing employees when they earn enough, or when they reach the age to be eligible for auto enrolment.

Use legislatively compliant software

Review your current software and admin processes – there’s a lot to do which can be time consuming and overwhelming. Find out how out software can make processing workplace pension information easier, quicker and ensure you remain compliant.

Confused by the terms?

Our auto enrolment Jargon Buster can help you get to grips with all of the new terms and lingo, giving you a helping hand when setting-up your workplace pension.