AVC Problem/Query

BecDomini

Hi!  Hoping someone can help.  Until recently I was employed by a school (academy) and paid a monthly AVC to boost my pension.  I decided to quit my job and gave my employer notice.  The slight complication is that, whilst I had an official leaving date, I was asked to work beyond that date to do a handover to the new person.  This would be on a casual basis and I would claim for any hours worked.  My employer forgot to take me off the payroll or cancel my AVC (even though I had talked to them about this).  The first month after my leaving date I did not earn anything because you can't claim casual hours until the month after you have worked them.  However, I got a payslip on which the AVC is still there and a tax rebate of the same amount plus a random small amount equating to 3.92% of the AVC.  The AVC and the tax rebate cancelled each other out and I was paid the small random amount.  Firstly, presumably you can't really pay an AVC when you aren't actually earning or paying any normal pension contributions - so what should happen about that?  Secondly, my employer is saying I will probably need to pay back the £250 to them via any future earnings.  However, I don't feel like I ever received the £250 (or maybe I have in that it has gone into my pension pot?) but what about the figure that appeared on my payslip as a minus tax amount?  As the school is an academy I can't phone up the local council to ask them about it as the school's finances are separate to the council I believe.  Any wisdom/advice would be most welcome!

Albermarle

Firstly, presumably you can't really pay an AVC when you aren't actually earning 

Your ability to earn tax relief on pension contributions is based on your annual income . The fact that you have gone one month without earning and seemingly still got some tax releif is not an issue in itself from HMRC point of view.

BecDomini

Thank you, Albermarle.  Yes, it seems rather odd to me that I could pay an AVC when I wasn't earning anything!  If I end up having to pay the school £250 do you think I will be losing out or not?  I'm a bit confused about it!  I suppose from the school's point of view they had to pay the money as I hadn't earned anything?