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Pensions Act 2008

  • Explanatory Notes Table of contents

Please note:

All reference to 'Parts' and 'sections' are from the Pensions Act 2008. For other versions of these Explanatory Notes, see More Resources.

  1. Introduction

  2. Background

  3. Summary

  4. The Act Overview

  5. Territorial Extent

    1. Territorial extent: Wales

    2. Territorial extent: Scotland

    3. Territorial Extent: Northern Ireland

  6. Commentary on Sections

    1. Part 1: Pension scheme membership for jobholders

      1. Chapter 1: Employers’ duties

        1. Section 1: Jobholders

        2. Section 2: Continuity of scheme membership

        3. Section 3: Automatic enrolment

        4. Section 4: Postponement of automatic enrolment

        5. Section 5: Automatic re-enrolment

          Section 6: Timing of automatic re-enrolment

        6. Section 7: Jobholder’s right to opt in

        7. Section 8: Jobholder’s right to opt out

        8. Section 9:  Workers without qualifying earnings

        9. Section 10: Information to be given to workers

        10. Section 11: Information to be given to the Pensions Regulator

        11. Section 12: Introduction of employers’ duties

        12. Section 13: Qualifying earnings

        13. Section 14: Review of qualifying earnings band

        14. Section 15: Pay reference period

        15. Section 16: Qualifying schemes

        16. Section 17: Automatic enrolment schemes

        17. Section 18: Occupational pension schemes

        18. Section 19: Personal pension schemes

        19. Section 20: Quality requirement: UK money purchase schemes

        20. Section 21: Quality requirement: UK defined benefits schemes

          Section 22: Test scheme standard

          Section 23: Test scheme

        21. Section 24: Quality requirement: UK hybrid schemes

        22. Section 25: Quality requirement: non-UK occupational pension schemes

        23. Section 26: Quality requirement: personal pension schemes

        24. Section 27: Quality requirement: other personal pension schemes

        25. Section 28: Sections 20, 24 and 26: Certification that quality requirement is satisfied

        26. Section 29: Transitional periods for money purchase and personal pension schemes

        27. Section 30: Transitional period for defined benefits and hybrid schemes

        28. Section 31: Effect of freezing order or assessment period

        29. Section 32: Power of trustees to modify by resolution

        30. Section 33: Deduction of contributions

      2. Chapter 2: Compliance

        1. Section 34: Effect of failure to comply

        2. Section 35: Compliance notices

          Section 36: Third party compliance notices

        3. Section 37: Unpaid contributions notices

        4. Section 38: Calculation and payment of contributions

        5. Section 39: Meaning of relevant contributions

        6. Section 40: Fixed penalty notices

          Section 41: Escalating penalty notices

          Section 42: Penalty notices: recovery

        7. Section 43: Review of notices

        8. Section 44: References to the Pensions Regulator Tribunal

        9. Section 45: Offences of failing to comply

          Section 46: Offences by bodies corporate

          Section 47: Offences by partnerships and unincorporated associations

        10. Section 48: Offences of providing false or misleading information

        11. Section 49: Monitoring of employers’ payments to personal pension schemes

      3. Chapter 3: Safeguards: Employment and pre-employment

        1. Section 50: Prohibited recruitment conduct

          Section 51: Compliance notices

          Section 52: Penalty notices

          Section 53: Review of notices and references to Pensions Regulator Tribunal

        2. Section 54: Inducements

        3. Section 55: The right not to suffer detriment

          Section 56: Enforcement of the right

        4. Section 57: Right of employee not to be unfairly dismissed

        5. Section 58: Restrictions on agreements to limit operation of this Part

        6. Section 59: Employment appeal tribunal

      4. Chapter 4: Supplementary provision about compliance and information sharing

        1. Section 60: Requirement to keep records

        2. Section 61: Powers to require information and to enter premises

        3. Section 62: Disclosure of tax information etc

        4. Section 63: Information for private pensions policy and retirement planning

        5. Section 64: Penalty for disclosure

        6. Section 65: Objectives of the Regulator

        7. Section 66: Functions of the Pensions Ombudsman

      5. Chapter 5: Duty to establish a pension scheme

        1. Section 67: Duty to establish a pension scheme

        2. Section 68: Scheme orders: general

        3. Section 69: Consultation of members and employers

        4. Section 70: Contribution limits

        5. Section 71: Procedure for scheme orders

        6. Section 72: Procedure for rules

        7. Section 73: Application of enactments

        8. Section 74: Review

        9. Section 75: Trustee corporation

    2. Schedule 1: The trustee corporation

    3. Section 76: Functions

    4. Section 77: Application of pension trustee legislation

    5. Section 78: Interpretation of Chapter

    6. Chapter 6: Personal Accounts Delivery Authority

      1. Section 79: Functions of the Authority

      2. Section 80: Principles

      3. Section 81: Directions and guidance

      4. Section 82: Finance

      5. Section 83: Disclosure of information by the Pensions Regulator

      6. Section 84: Non-executive committee

      7. Section 85: Executive members

      8. Section 86: Winding up of the Authority

    7. Chapter 7: Stakeholder pension schemes

      1. Section 87: Stakeholder pension schemes

    8. Chapter 8: Application and interpretation

      1. Section 88: “Employer”, “worker” and related expressions

      2. Section 89: Agency workers

      3. Section 90: Directors

      4. Section 91: Crown employment

        Section 92: Armed Forces

        Section 93: House of Lords staff

        Section 94: House of Commons staff

        Section 95: Police

      5. Section 96: Persons working on vessels

      6. Section 97: Persons in offshore employment

      7. Section 98: Extension of definition of worker

      8. Section 99: Interpretation of Part

    9. Part 2: Simplification

      1. Section 100: Abolition of safeguarded rights

      2. Section 101: Revaluation of accrued benefits etc

    10. Schedule 2: Revaluation of accrued benefits etc.

      1. Part 1

      2. Part 2

      3. Part 3

    11. Section 102: Consolidation of additional pension

    12. Schedule 3: Consolidation of additional pension

    13. Section 103: Effect of entitlement to guaranteed minimum pension

    14. Section 104: Additional pensions etc: minor and consequential amendments

    15. Schedule 4: additional pension etc: minor and consequential amendments

    16. Section 105: State pension credit: extension of assessed income period for those aged 75 or over

    17. Section 106: Contracting out: Abolition of all protected rights

    18. Part 3: Pension compensation

      1. Chapter 1: Pension compensation on divorce etc.

        1. Section 107: Scope of mechanism

        2. Section 108: Interpretation

        3. Section 109: Activation of pension compensation sharing

        4. Section 110: Activation of pension compensation sharing: supplementary (Scotland)

        5. Section 111: Creation of pension compensation debits and credits

        6. Section 112: Cash equivalents

        7. Section 113: Reduction of compensation

        8. Section 114: Time for discharge of liability

          Section 115: “Implementation period”

        9. Section 116: Discharge of liability

    19. Schedule 5: Pension compensation payable on discharge of pension compensation credit

      1. Part 2: Transferee attains pension compensation age before or on transfer day

      2. Part 3: Transferee attains pension compensation after transfer day

      3. Part 4: Provisions applicable irrespective of age of transferee on transfer day

    20. Section 117: Charges in respect of compensation sharing costs

    21. Section 118: Supply of information about compensation in relation to divorce etc.

      Section 119: Supply of information about compensation sharing

    22. Section 120: Pension compensation sharing and attachment on divorce etc

    23. Schedule 6: Pension compensation sharing and attachment on divorce etc: England and Wales

    24. Schedule 7: Pension compensation on divorce etc: Scotland

    25. Chapter 2: Other provision about pension compensation

      1. Section 121: Charges in respect of pension compensation sharing etc.

      2. Section 122: Amendments of Schedule 7 to the Pensions Act 2004

    26. Schedule 8: Amendments of Schedule 7 to the Pension Act 2004

    27. Section 123: Consequential amendments

    28. Part 4: Financial Assistance Scheme

      1. Section 124: Financial Assistance Scheme

      2. Section 125: Restriction on purchase of annuities

    29. Part 5: Miscellaneous

      1. Section 126:  Amendments to the Pensions Act 2004 relating to contribution notices and financial support directions

    30. Schedule 9 – contribution notices and financial support directions under Pensions Act 2004

      1. 38A Section 38 contribution notice: meaning of “material detriment test”

      2. 38B Section 38 contribution notice issued by reference to material detriment test: defence

      3. Contribution notices: acting or failing to act otherwise in good faith

      4. Whether reasonable for the Pensions Regulator to issue contribution notice

      5. Contribution notices: series of acts or failures

      6. 39A Section 38 contribution notice: transfer of members of the scheme

      7. 39B Section 39A: supplemental

      8. 43A Financial support directions: transfer of members of the scheme.

      9. Financial support directions: meaning of “insufficiently resourced”

      10. Effect of amendments made by the Schedule

      11. Transitional Provisions

    31. Section 127 “Review of the initial operation of sections 38A and 38B of the Pensions Act 2004

    32. Section 128: Pension sharing: power of Court of Session to extend time limits

    33. Section 129: Interest on late payment of levies

    34. Schedule 10: Interest on late payment of levies

    35. Section 130: Payments to employers

    36. Section 131: Appointment of trustees

    37. Section 132: Intervention by Regulator where scheme’s technical provisions improperly determined

    38. Section 133: Delegation of powers by the Regulator

    39. Section 134: Exclusion of transfers out in certain cases

    40. Section 135: Additional Class 3 contributions

    41. Section 136: Additional Class 3 contributions (Northern Ireland)

    42. Section 137: Official pensions: adjustment of increases in survivors’ pensions

    43. Section 138: War pensions: effect of later marriage or civil partnership

    44. Section 139: Polish Resettlement Act 1947: effect of residence in Poland

    45. Section 140: Pre -1948 insurance affecting German Pensions Entitlement

      Section 141: Pre-1948 insurance: supplementary

    46. Section 142: Disclosure of information relating to state pension credit recipients

    47. Part 6: General

      1. Section 143: Orders and regulations

      2. Section 144: Orders and regulations: supplementary, and

        Section 145: Power to make further provision

      3. Section 146: Pre consolidation amendments

      4. Section 147: General financial provisions

      5. Section 148: Repeals

      6. Section 149: Commencement

      7. Section 150: Extent

      8. Section 151: Short title

  7. Commencement

  8. Hansard References

  • Explanatory Notes Table of contents

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Explanatory Notes

Text created by the government department responsible for the subject matter of the Act to explain what the Act sets out to achieve and to make the Act accessible to readers who are not legally qualified. Explanatory Notes were introduced in 1999 and accompany all Public Acts except Appropriation, Consolidated Fund, Finance and Consolidation Acts.

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