PTM167100 - Information and administration: other information requirements for scheme administrators: pension savings statements provided automatically to the member
Glossary PTM000001
For guidance on the information included in pension savings statements for tax years 2011-12 to 2014-15 and the deadlines for providing the statements see the Registered Pension Schemes Manual on the National Archives website .
For guidance on the information included in pension savings statements for tax years 2015-16 and 2016-17 and the deadlines for providing the statements, see previous versions of the Pensions Tax Manual on the National Archives website.
When the scheme administrator must automatically give information to the scheme member
Type of pension savings statement
Deadline for automatically providing a pension savings statement to the member
When the scheme administrator does not provide the pension savings statement on time
When incorrect information has been given on the pension savings statement
Reporting to HMRC that a pension savings statement has been given to a scheme member
Providing pension savings statement-type information automatically
When the scheme administrator must automatically give information to the scheme member
Regulation 14A The Registered Pension Schemes (Provision of Information) Regulations 2006 - SI 2006/567
The scheme administrator must give a member a pension savings statement automatically for a tax year if the individual is an active member (or a deferred member and the ‘deferred member carve-out’ does not apply - see PTM053900) for all or part of the pension input period ending in that tax year, and either:
- the individual’s pension input amounts under the scheme are more than the annual allowance amount in section 228 Finance Act 2004 (for example, £40,000 for tax year 2022-23), that is, the tapered annual allowance is ignored, or
- the scheme administrator believes the individual has flexibly accessed a money purchase arrangement and their money purchase pension input amounts under the scheme are more than £4,000.
Guidance on how and when a scheme administrator should be notified that a member has flexibly accessed their pension rights starts at PTM166100.
PTM167200 provides guidance on what information the scheme administrator must provide on a pension savings statement.
If a member does not meet the conditions for being given a pension savings statement automatically, they can still ask the scheme administrator for information about their pension input amounts under the scheme. PTM167300 gives more information about what happens when the scheme administrator is asked for information about pension input amounts.
Split schemes
If the registered pension scheme is a split scheme in accordance with the Registered Pension Schemes (Splitting of Schemes Regulations) 2006 - SI 2006/569 - the requirement to provide information falls on the sub-scheme administrator.
Type of pension savings statement
The pension savings statements come in two forms.
Standard pension savings statements
Where the scheme administrator:
- does not believe the member has flexibly accessed their pension rights, or
- does believe the member has flexibly accessed their pension rights but their money purchase pension input amounts under the scheme are not more than £4,000, and
- in either case, the member’s pension input amounts under the scheme are more than the annual allowance (see When the scheme administrator must automatically give information to the scheme member above for what the annual allowance means in practice).
Money purchase pension savings statement
Where the scheme administrator:
- has reason to believe the member has flexibly accessed their pension rights, and
- the member’s money purchase pension input amounts under the scheme are more than £4,000.
What money purchase pension input amounts are for the purpose of a money purchase pension savings statement
Money purchase pension input amounts are pension input amounts made to all the following types of arrangements under the scheme:
- other money purchase arrangements
- cash balance arrangements
- hybrid arrangements being the highest of input amounts A (cash balance) and B (other money purchase) - see PTM167200.
Deadline for automatically providing a pension savings statement to the member
Regulation 14A(4) to (6C) The Registered Pension Schemes (Provision of Information) Regulations 2006 - SI 2006/567
A pension savings statement for a particular tax year should be given to the individual by 6 October following the end of the relevant tax year.
However, this 6 October deadline is extended in the following circumstances.
Information needed from third parties
For certain schemes the scheme administrator needs information from a third party to allow the scheme administrator to calculate the pension input amount for a member. There are regulations that set out when the required information must be provided to the scheme administrator - see PTM167400.
If the scheme administrator has not been given this required information on time the deadline for giving the pension savings statement to the member is extended. The deadline becomes 3 months following the day the scheme administrator received the required information.
Where a third party provides the required information to a scheme administrator but finds it to be insufficient and so provides additional information to the scheme administrator that then changes a member’s pension input amount, the deadline for giving the pension savings statement to the member is extended. The deadline becomes 3 months following the day the scheme administrator received the additional information.
For details about when a pension savings statement must be issued following the receipt of additional information, see PTM167500.
Change to pension scheme rules
The deadline for giving the pension savings statement is extended where the rules of a pension scheme are changed and, due to that scheme rule change, the member’s pension input amount changes. The deadline becomes 3 months following the day the scheme rule change is made.
For details about when a pension savings statement must be issued following a change to pension scheme rules, see PTM167600.
When the scheme administrator does not provide the pension savings statement on time
Section 98(1) Taxes Management Act 1970
If the scheme administrator does not provide the pension savings statement on time they can be liable to the penalties described at PTM160800.
When incorrect information has been given on the pension savings statement
Section 98(2) Taxes Management Act 1970
The most important thing is to give the correct information to the individual as soon as an error has been identified.
Penalties can be given for supplying incorrect information on the pension savings statement. - see PTM160800.
Reporting to HMRC that a pension savings statement has been given to a scheme member
Regulation 3 The Registered Pension Schemes (Provision of Information) Regulations 2006 - SI 2006/567
If a scheme administrator gives the member a pension savings statement automatically, they must report this fact to HMRC on the Event Report. The information the scheme administrator must provide on the Event Report depends on:
- did they have reason to believe that the member had flexibly accessed their pension rights, and
- were the member’s money purchase pension input amounts under the scheme more than £4,000?
If the answer to either, or both, of these questions is ‘no’ and the member’s pension input amounts under the scheme are more than the annual allowance (see When the scheme administrator must automatically give information to the scheme member above for what the annual allowance means in practice) then the scheme administrator should have issued a standard pension savings statement and make a report under reportable event 22.
If the answer to both these questions is ‘yes’, then the scheme administrator should have issued a money purchase pension savings statement and make a report under reportable event 23.
PTM161600 provides guidance on the information that should be reported on the Event Report.
Providing pension savings statement-type information automatically
Regulation 14D The Registered Pension Schemes (Provision of Information) Regulations 2006 - SI 2006/567
In the following circumstances a scheme administrator must give to a member automatically updated information that, itself, is not a pension savings statement but is information of the type that would be given in a pension savings statement.
The circumstances are:
- a pension savings statement has already been given automatically for a tax year
- there is a change to the member’s pension input amount for that tax year
- that change in pension input amount is due to either:
- the change in pension input amount means the conditions for giving a pension savings statement automatically for the tax year do not apply.
The deadline for giving the updated information to the member is 3 months following (as the case may be) the day the addtional information is received from the third party or the day the scheme rule change is made or, if later, on or before 6 October following the end of the tax year for which the updated information must be given.
For details about a change in pension input amount due to the scheme administrator receiving additional information from a third party, see PTM167500.
For details about a change in pension input amount due to a change to pension scheme rules, see PTM167600.