Guidance

Information requirements for pension schemes

Find out about the requirements for pension scheme administrators, insurance companies, members and employers and how to report them to HMRC.

From:
HM Revenue & Customs
Published
16 September 2014
Last updated
16 April 2024 — See all updates

Records you must keep

The notification of registration issued by HMRC is the scheme’s confirmation that it’s a registered pension scheme. You must keep this as you may need to produce your certificate at a later date — for example, to prove that the scheme is formally registered.

As a scheme administrator, scheme employer, trustee or provider of administrative services to a registered pension scheme you must also keep documents for 6 years for:

  • money received into the scheme
  • money owed to the scheme
  • investments or assets held by the scheme
  • payments made by the scheme
  • contracts to purchase an annuity in respect of a member of the scheme
  • the management of the scheme
  • any transfer out of the scheme

Information required by HMRC

As a scheme administrator of a registered pension scheme you must automatically provide HMRC with:

  • event reports
  • Accounting for Tax (AFT) Returns
  • annual return of information (if you’re the scheme administrator of a relief at source scheme)
  • unauthorised borrowing reports
  • notification of a transfer of pension funds to a qualifying recognised overseas pension scheme (QROPS)
  • if your scheme becomes or stops being a Master Trust scheme
  • notification that you’re no longer the scheme administrator

If your Pension Scheme Tax Reference (PSTR) starts with a ‘2’ you will have to submit some reports or returns manually.

Event reports

There are some events that occur in a registered pension scheme that you must report to HMRC using an event report. You must send event reports to HMRC no later than 31 January after the end of the relevant tax year.

If you are reporting the winding up of the pension scheme the deadline date is 3 months from the date the scheme finishes winding up.

AFT Return

The scheme administrator is subject to tax charges when their registered pension scheme makes certain payments. Most of these tax charges must be reported and paid to HMRC using the AFT Return. This is a quarterly return that must be sent to HMRC together with the tax due.

Relief at source annual return of information

Registered pension schemes operating relief at source must submit an annual return of information. This must detail all net contributions paid in the previous tax year. As part of the return, you must also complete and send us the form APSS590 confirming that the information on the return is true and complete. You must submit this return by 5 July following the end of the tax year in which the contributions were made.

Read more about relief at source annual information return and the declaration.

Unauthorised borrowing report

As scheme administrator you must report any borrowing by the registered pension scheme that does not meet the authorised borrowing conditions to HMRC. You must do this using form APSS303 by 31 January following the end of the tax year in which the scheme borrowed the money.

Report of transfer of pension funds to a QROPS

You must check the scheme you are making a transfer to is a qualifying recognised overseas pension scheme. Any transfer to an overseas scheme that is not a QROPS will result in the scheme sanction charge for an unauthorised payment.

You must ask a member requesting an overseas transfer, within 30 days of receiving the request, for information about the overseas scheme. The member can use form APSS263 to supply this information.

You must check whether the requested transfer is a taxable overseas transfer and subject either to a:

  • 25% tax charge on the transfer

  • 25% tax charge on the excess over the member’s overseas transfer allowance

You can make transfers before the member supplies information to the scheme administrator.

These transfers will be subject to the 25% overseas transfer charge. You can reclaim this if it turns out the charge should not have applied.

You must tell HMRC within 60 days of a transfer by submitting form APSS262.

You will have to pay any tax due to HMRC, accounting for it on the AFT Return.

If a repayment is due in relation to a tax charge they pay, you will need to make a claim within 5 full tax years of the original transfer using form APSS242. HMRC will review the claim before making any repayment and contact you to request an amended AFT Return.

Once HMRC has made a repayment, you must provide the member with details of the:

  • amount of the repayment
  • reason for the repayment
  • date it was repaid

You must also provide the scheme manager with a copy of the previous notification of the original transfer together with:

  • details of the amount of the repayment
  • the reason for the repayment
  • the date it was repaid

Report if you become or stop being a Master Trust

A Master Trust scheme is an occupational pension scheme which provides money purchase benefits. These benefits are either alone or in conjunction with other benefits.

Two or more employers must use or intend to use to scheme but the:

  • employers cannot be connected, such as part of the same group of companies
  • scheme cannot be a relevant public service pension scheme

You must tell HMRC within 30 days if your scheme becomes or stops being a Master Trust. You must report this on the event report.

You also need to tell The Pensions Regulator if you become or stop being a Master Trust.

If you become a Master Trust you must also apply to The Pensions Regulator for authorisation. If you do not get authorisation from The Pensions Regulator, you will not be able to operate as a Master Trust.

If you stop being a Master Trust, you may also need to tell The Pensions Regulator. You can find more information on reporting events on The Pensions Regulator website.

Report that you are no longer the scheme administrator

You must tell HMRC if you stop being the scheme administrator of a scheme within 30 days of the date you stopped. You can do this online.

If your scheme has a PSTR beginning with ‘2’, you should do this on the managing pension schemes service. If you have stopped being a scheme administrator for all schemes, you can de-enrol as a scheme administrator on the managing pension schemes service.

If your scheme has a PSTR beginning with ‘0’, you should do this using the Pension Schemes Online Service. If the scheme has been migrated, you must also update this on the managing pension schemes service.

Pension Scheme Return (PSR)

HMRC may send a notice to file letter to the scheme administrator telling them to complete a PSR. They must complete and submit the PSR by the date shown on the letter.

Pension flexibility payments and pension flexibility death benefits payments

You must report pension flexibility payments and pension flexibility death benefits payments to HMRC through Real Time Information (RTI).

You can read more about this in chapter 2 of the CWG2 guide.

Tax return for trustees of registered pension schemes

HMRC will send the pension scheme trustees a notice to file a SA970 tax return if they have reclaimed tax deducted from investment income. The scheme trustees must also complete this tax return if they have any taxable income. This return is only available in paper format for submission by 31 January following the end of the relevant tax year.

Keep your information up to date

You should tell HMRC about any changes to the scheme details or the scheme administrator.

Tell us your scheme administrator details have changed

If your scheme has a PSTR beginning with ‘2’, you should tell us about changes to your scheme administrator details using the managing pension schemes service. If you’ve stopped being a scheme administrator for all schemes, you can de-enrol as a scheme administrator on the managing pension schemes service.

If your scheme has a PSTR beginning ‘0’, you should report changes to your scheme administrator details through the Pension Schemes Online service. Find out more in the pension schemes online user guide.

Tell us your scheme details have changed

If your scheme has a PSTR beginning with ‘2’ you must tell us about changes to your scheme details using the managing pension schemes service.

If your scheme has a PSTR beginning with ‘0’, you must tell us about changes to your scheme details using the Pension Schemes Online service. If your pension scheme has migrated, you’ll need to update the details on both services.

If you need to amend the scheme name you’ll need to tell HMRC in writing at:

Pension Schemes Services
HM Revenue and Customs
BX9 1GH
United Kingdom

You’ll need to include the:

  • PSTR of the scheme you want to make changes to
  • current name of scheme
  • new name of scheme
  • reason for change
  • contact name, address and telephone number
  • copy of new trust deed

Information that must be given to members

As a scheme administrator you must give certain information to members, such as:

  • a flexible access statement telling them they have flexibly accessed their money purchase pension savings and information about what they need to do next — if they are accessing those pension rights for the first time
  • a standard pension savings statement of the amount of their pension savings in the pension scheme for a tax year — if they are more than the annual allowance or the member asks for a statement
  • a money purchase pension savings statement where they have flexibly accessed their money purchase pension rights, and their subsequent money purchase pension savings exceed the available money purchase annual allowance
  • a relevant benefit crystallisation statement telling them how much of both their:
    • lump sum allowance they’ve used
    • lump sum and death benefit allowance they’ve used
  • any unauthorised payment caused by the scheme providing the member with a benefit in kind
  • transfers to a QROPS including any tax paid or the exemption which made it tax free and how much of the overseas transfer allowance they’ve used

If the overseas transfer charge is repaid by HMRC, you must tell the member, within 3 months of the repayment, the date and amount of the repayment and the condition which allowed it.

Relief at source member information playback

Before your member can make contributions under relief at source, and before you can claim tax relief from HMRC, the member or their representative must:

  • provide basic personal information
  • make certain declarations

If these are not given in writing or are provided by someone other than the member or their representative, you must replay all the information back to the member and make a declaration on their behalf. This is referred to as playback.

The scheme administrator’s playback declaration

To carry out a playback you must provide the member with:

When you do this you must also state the terms of the declarations that have been made.

Review of playback information by the member

You must give your member 30 days to review the information you send them to make sure it’s correct. Your playback declaration takes effect from the date you sent it if within the 30 days the member does not:

  • ask you to make corrections
  • tell you that they no longer wish to become a member

If your member tells you that the information needs correcting you should send a new, revised playback declaration.

If your member told you that your original playback declaration was incorrect within 30 days, and they do not tell you that the new revised playback declaration is incorrect within 30 days from when you sent the revision, your new revised playback declaration takes effect from the date you sent your original playback declaration.

Give information to other scheme administrators and insurers

If a member transfers a pension in payment to another pension scheme, the transferring scheme administrator must:

  • give the new scheme administrator details of the amount of the individual’s allowances used up when that pension first started
  • do this within 3 months of the transfer

If the transferring scheme administrator believes the member first flexibly accessed their money purchase pension rights before the transfer, they must tell the new scheme administrator the date they believe it happened. They must do this within 31 days from the day the transfer took place or the day they first became aware that the member had flexibly accessed pension rights, whichever is later.

A scheme administrator must give information to an insurance company if a:

  • member or scheme administrator has purchased an annuity using scheme funds
  • member receiving a drawdown pension uses part of their drawdown pension fund to buy an annuity from an insurance company

They must give details of the amount of lifetime allowance used up by the pension (and any tax-free lump sum) when the pension first started. They must do this within 3 months of the purchase of the annuity.

Give information to QROPS managers

Where a scheme administrator has made a transfer to a QROPS, they need to inform the scheme manager of the QROPS within 31 days of the transfer:

  • whether a 25% tax charge applies to the transfer
  • how much tax has been paid
  • if the charge did not apply, why it was tax free

As a scheme administrator, if your scheme has paid a lump sum death benefit where the lump sum uses up some or all the member’s lump sum and death benefit allowance, you must tell the member’s personal representative the:

  • amount of the lump sum and death benefit allowance used up by the lump sum payment
  • date of the payment

You have 3 months to give this information to the member’s personal representative.

You can read more detailed technical guidance on information requirements where the scheme member has died.

The member’s personal representative may ask about other benefits the scheme paid, that used up their lump sum and death benefit allowance. You must give them this information within 2 months of their request.

The member’s total pension savings may be more than the individual’s lump sum and death benefit allowance. In this case, the members personal representative must tell HMRC.

Trustees of a trust receiving a lump sum death benefit

As a scheme administrator, if you pay taxable lump sum death benefits to the trust, you must tell the trustees:

  • the amount of the payment before tax
  • how much tax you deducted

You must tell the trustees this information within 30 days of paying the lump sum death benefit to the trust.

The trustees will pass this information to any beneficiary who receives a trust payment funded by the lump sum death benefit the trust received from the pension scheme.

Further guidance and the Pensions Tax Manual

A number of guides on pension scheme administration are available on GOV.UK and full detailed technical guidance regarding registered pension schemes can be found in the Pensions Tax Manual.

Updates to this page

Published 16 September 2014
Last updated 16 April 2024 + show all updates

  1. Information that must be given to and by legal personal representatives has been updated to confirm what information must be given when a scheme has paid a lump sum death benefit and how long you have to give this information.

  2. Updated the information that must be given to members, as well as information given to and by legal representatives.

  3. Clarified that you must tell HMRC within 30 days if your scheme becomes or stops being a Master Trust.

  4. Guidance has been added about using an event report to tell us if your scheme becomes or ceases to be a master trust. Instructions to use form APSS578 have been removed.

  5. Information about submitting Accounting for Tax returns has been updated.

  6. Link for submitting your Accounting For Tax return has been updated.

  7. Relief at source member information playback added.

  8. Guidance on Event Reports, reporting of transfer of pension funds to a QROPS, reporting that you’re no longer the scheme administrator and keeping your information up to date has been updated.

  9. Updates made to the 'Report you’re no longer the scheme administrator' and 'Keeping your information up to date' sections, to give additional guidance as a result of changes being introduced to the Managing Pension Schemes service.

  10. The section report if you become, or cease to be, a master trust has been updated.

  11. Scheme administrators with a Pension Scheme Tax Reference beginning with '2' will need to submit some reports or returns manually. They must contact Pension Schemes Online Services if they submit reports or returns manually, or if they're no longer the scheme administrator.

  12. Annual return of information added to the list of information required by HMRC with its deadline of 5 July included. Master trust schemes must also be reported to HMRC.

  13. Links added for new R185 forms for scheme administrators notifying trustees, or trustees notifying beneficiaries, of lump sum death benefits.

  14. Amendments have been introduced to expand the information on transfers to a QROPS. The address for the Pension Scheme Services has been replaced.

  15. This guidance has been updated to reflect legislation changes effective from 6 April 2016 for pension flexibility payments, pension flexibility death benefits payments, and trustees of a trust receiving a lump sum death benefit.

  16. Administrators are now required to provide flexible access statements and pension savings statements to scheme members. The administrator of a transferring scheme must tell the new administrator if they believe the pension member has flexibly accessed their pension rights.

  17. First published.

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