Introduced as a law in 2012 to encourage more people to consider a pension or saving for retirement, auto-enrolment is a phased scheme that affects every organisation with a PAYE plan. As of late 2016, all employers will have to auto-enrol eligible employees into a qualifying pension scheme. It is the employer’s responsibility to have a pension scheme in place and this can be administered through the Government-backed NEST (National Employment Savings Trust) scheme, or one of a number of other reputable programmes, some of which specifically cater for small and medium sized businesses.
Whilst 2016 seems a long way off, and your actual start date varies depending on a number of factors, it would be wise to start thinking now about how you will manage this new legal requirement. Will your in-house payroll team process the applications or will you outsource? What and how will you communicate to employees? Who will deal with the ongoing administration?
Howell & Co urges you to take the time now to prepare and ensure you avoid the substantial penalties for non-compliance.