Year: 2015
Consultation on revised DC code of practice
18th December 2015
Introduction Since the Pensions Regulator (TPR) published its code of practice 13: Trust-based Defined Contribution (DC) Schemes in 2013, the legislative landscape has changed drastically, with: individuals now having much more flexibility around how they may take their DC benefits at retirement and new legislative standards with which DC schemes have to comply. TPR is, … Read more
Pension Transfers and Early Exit Charges
20th November 2015
The Government issued a consultation during the summer, seeking the views of pension specialists regarding potential barriers to individuals taking advantage of the new pension freedoms and on the circumstances in which individuals should take financial advice. At the same time it issued a survey for individual consumers to share their experience of accessing the … Read more
Employer covenant – new guidance
6th November 2015
The Pensions Regulator has updated its guidance for trustees on assessing the employer covenant. This is not a short document – running to 66 pages; however, the last 13 pages are relevant only to not-for-profit organisations and multi-employer schemes for non-associated employers. The Regulator recommends that, as a minimum, all trustees read: “At a glance” … Read more
Restriction of same-sex survivors’ pensions
23rd October 2015
The Equality Act 2010 contains a dispensation for occupational pension schemes, which allows them to calculate dependants’ pensions for surviving civil partners and same-sex spouses based only on service since December 2005, plus an addition of 50% of the GMP accrued by the member between April 1988 and December 2005. An employment tribunal case in … Read more
The End of Short-service Refunds
11th September 2015
With effect from 1 October 2015 defined contribution schemes will no longer have the ability to pay a refund of contributions to a member who leaves the scheme within two years, unless he has less than 30 days’ membership. Background Since 1988 members of trust-based occupational pension schemes have had to complete at least 2 … Read more
Proposed amendments to IAS 19
24th July 2015
The International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) is proposing changes to IAS 19 and IFRIC 14 – the international accounting standards that govern the way in which companies account for their defined benefit pension scheme and other post-retirement benefits. Recognition of a surplus The current rules allow a company to recognize a surplus in the pension … Read more
Summer Budget 2015
10th July 2015
As heralded widely in the run-up to the General Election, in the Summer Budget, delivered on 8 July, George Osborne confirmed the introduction of a transferable £175,000 Inheritance Tax allowance for a family home, on top of the existing threshold. This is to be paid for by further restrictions on tax-relieved pensions saving. Annual allowance … Read more
The Pensions Regulator’s annual funding statement
12th June 2015
The Pensions Regulator has issued its annual funding statement, setting out its expectations of valuations with effective dates between 22 September 2014 and 21 September 2015. Managing risk The Regulator expects trustees to understand their scheme’s sensitivity to different risks, including the likelihood of those risks occurring and the resultant impact on the scheme, and … Read more
Finance Act 2015
2nd April 2015
The Finance Bill received Royal Assent on 26 March. This Act includes details of the changes to the distribution and taxation of defined contribution benefits on the death of a member. However, the reduction in the Lifetime Allowance to £1 million, that George Osborne announced in the Budget on 18 March, will appear in a … Read more
Assignment of section 75 debt
13th March 2015
In the case of the Trustee of the Singer & Friedlander Ltd Pension and Assurance Scheme v Corbett, the High Court has ruled that trustees may assign a section 75 debt to another party. Background The Singer & Friedlander Scheme was a defined benefit (DB) occupational pension scheme whose sponsoring employer, Kaupthing, Singer & Friedlander, … Read more
Pension Transfers – Suspected Liberation
20th February 2015
The Pensions Ombudsman has published three determinations in relation to pension liberation, together with accompanying guidance. The cases all concerned members who had been denied a transfer from a personal pension arrangement to schemes that were said to be occupational pension schemes registered with HMRC, because the providers suspected that those schemes were in fact … Read more
Automatic enrolment thresholds
30th January 2015
Following a consultation last year, the Government has proposed the following figures, relating to automatic enrolment obligations, for the 2015/16 tax year: £10,000 for the automatic enrolment earnings trigger, unchanged from 2014/15, £5,824 for the lower limit of the qualifying earnings band, equal to the NICs Lower Earnings Limit, and £42,385 for the upper limit … Read more
Clarity on VAT
9th January 2015
Following European Court decisions in two separate cases last year, and a consequent review of its treatment of VAT on services provided to pension schemes, HMRC has now announced changes to its position. In summary: in relation to defined benefit (DB) schemes, HMRC will allow sponsoring employers to reclaim VAT paid on administration and other … Read more