Payroll industry urged to approach employers ahead of automatic enrolment

The Pensions Regulator has today issued an open letter to the payroll software industry.

 

With employers able to start automatically enrolling workers from next October – and in some cases as early as next July – the regulator is calling on payroll software developers to share details of planned product offerings and delivery timescales. This is especially important for those customers who will need to be ready for automatic enrolment within the next 18 months.

 

Charles Counsell, executive director for employer compliance, said:

 

“A lot of the large employers that we’re talking to are saying that they need more information before they can start formalising plans. The payroll software industry can really help here.

 

“We’ve had an excellent relationship with the payroll industry in the last twelve months in terms of product design and development. Now we need the industry to share their products with employers to help them prepare for auto enrolment.”

 

In April, the regulator issued detailed technical guidance for the payroll industry. This has helped to ensure that products developed to help employers comply with their new duties are suitable and reflect the legislative requirements.

 

 

Supporting the UK’s employers with automatic enrolment
Open letter to the payroll software industry

 

1. The Pensions Regulator is the regulator of work-based pension schemes in the UK, with objectives to protect members' benefits, promote good administration and reduce the risk of calls on the Pension Protection Fund.
2. In the 2008 Pensions Act, and corresponding Northern Ireland legislation, The Pensions Regulator was given a new statutory objective to maximise compliance with employer duties (including the requirement to automatically enrol eligible employees into a qualifying pension provision and pay a minimum contribution) and with certain employment safeguards.
3. From October 2012 employers will be required to automatically enrol all their eligible jobholders into a qualifying pension scheme and make a minimum contribution of a jobholder's qualifying earnings into the scheme (this contribution will be increased in phases).
4. An eligible jobholder who reaches 22 and who has not reached pensionable age must be automatically enrolled in a qualifying scheme by the employer. Qualifying schemes are pension schemes that satisfy the quality criteria prescribed in the Pensions Act 2008. The criteria establish a minimum standard for the level of contributions made to the scheme or the level of benefit provided.

• Ben Lloyd: 01273 627208
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