We want to help you get a better understanding of what you need to do to fulfil your employer duties. Choose if you are new to workplace pensions or if you’ve been up and running for a while:
Auto enrolment was introduced in 2012, as a government initiative. It makes it compulsory for employers to enroll certain employees into a workplace pension. The employer must also make a contribution to the scheme.
You’ll need to know your automatic enrolment start date, make sure you have a PAYE number from HMRC, and a UK bank account for the business.
The table below shows you how to identify each type of worker:
1 These figures are for the 2023/24 tax year.
Your employer duties will depend on the types of worker you employ. You'll need to automatically enrol some workers into a pension scheme and arrange membership for others. You're also responsible for the ongoing maintenance of the scheme and have an obligation to keep certain records.
The table below summarises your employer duties for each type of worker.
Category of worker | An overview of your employer duties |
---|---|
Eligible jobholder |
|
Non-eligible jobholder |
|
Entitled worker |
|
You'll need to keep records of how you've met and continue to meet your employer duties. This includes information about your workers and the pension scheme which must be provided to TPR when requested.
You can use electronic or paper-filing systems to store records and can use your existing business documentation, such as payroll records, to meet the requirements.
You can also authorise a 3rd party to keep records on your behalf, although you'll have legal responsibility to ensure records are kept and provide them to The Pensions Regulator (TPR) when requested.
Who the record relates to | What record must be kept | How long it must be kept |
---|---|---|
Jobholders and workers who become members |
|
6 years |
Additional information for jobholders only |
|
6 years |
|
4 years | |
Additional information for workers only |
|
6 years |
All workers for whom postponement has been used |
|
1 You can find further information on pay reference periods in the Detailed guidance no 3 - Assessing the workforce.
Type of pension scheme being used | What record must be kept | How long it must be kept |
---|---|---|
Defined contribution (DC), defined benefit (DB) or hybrid scheme |
|
6 years |
Personal pension scheme |
|
|
DC scheme, where the employer is certifying that a quality or alternative requirement is satisfied |
|
6 years after the end of the certification period |
2 A hypothetical scheme used as a benchmark.
The employer duties are not optional and TPR will be responsible for ensuring that you comply. Although their approach will be to educate and encourage compliance, you'll face substantial fines or even imprisonment if you don't comply.
The TPR will impose penalties if you don’t comply with your employer duties:
Other penalties:
The TPR can impose three other types of penalties if you’re found to be guilty of:
You have the right to appeal against any penalties imposed by TPR and must do so in writing.
Every three years you must re-enrol certain workers into your qualifying pension scheme. You also need to re-declare compliance with TPR. This process is called cyclical re-enrolment. The cyclical re-enrolment and auto enrolment processes are mostly the same.
Find out more in our about cyclical re-enrolment factsheet, or in our full guide to cyclical re-enrolment.
You may have heard about NEST, the National Employment Savings Trust. NEST is a pension scheme that is primarily aimed at low to medium earners and small employers that don't have access to a company pension scheme.
It's designed to be a simple, low cost option.
Workers will be automatically invested in a default fund based on time to retirement. This will not take into account an individual's attitude to risk.
The table below shows you how to identify each type of worker:
1 These figures are for the 2023/24 tax year.
Your employer duties will depend on the types of worker you employ. You'll need to automatically enrol some workers into a pension scheme and arrange membership for others. You're also responsible for the ongoing maintenance of the scheme and have an obligation to keep certain records.
The table below summarises your employer duties for each type of worker.
Category of worker | An overview of your employer duties |
---|---|
Eligible jobholder |
|
Non-eligible jobholder |
|
Entitled worker |
|
You'll need to keep records of how you've met and continue to meet your employer duties. This includes information about your workers and the pension scheme which must be provided to TPR when requested.
You can use electronic or paper-filing systems to store records and can use your existing business documentation, such as payroll records, to meet the requirements.
You can also authorise a 3rd party to keep records on your behalf, although you'll have legal responsibility to ensure records are kept and provide them to The Pensions Regulator (TPR) when requested.
Who the record relates to | What record must be kept | How long it must be kept |
---|---|---|
Jobholders and workers who become members |
|
6 years |
Additional information for jobholders only |
|
6 years |
|
4 years | |
Additional information for workers only |
|
6 years |
All workers for whom postponement has been used |
|
1 You can find further information on pay reference periods on the Pensions Regulator website.
Type of pension scheme being used | What record must be kept | How long it must be kept |
---|---|---|
Defined contribution (DC), defined benefit (DB) or hybrid scheme |
|
6 years |
Personal pension scheme |
|
|
DC scheme, where the employer is certifying that a quality or alternative requirement is satisfied |
|
6 years after the end of the certification period |
2 A hypothetical scheme used as a benchmark.
The employer duties are not optional and TPR will be responsible for ensuring that you comply. Although their approach will be to educate and encourage compliance, you'll face substantial fines or even imprisonment if you don't comply.
The TPR will impose penalties if you don’t comply with your employer duties:
Other penalties:
The TPR can impose three other types of penalties if you’re found to be guilty of:
You have the right to appeal against any penalties imposed by TPR and must do so in writing.
Every three years you must re-enrol certain workers into your qualifying pension scheme. You al so need to re-declare compliance with TPR. This process is called cyclical re-enrolment. The cyclical re-enrolment and auto enrolment processes are mostly the same.
Find out more in our full guide to cyclical re-enrolment.