How long does it take for your payday pension contributions to reach your personal pension?

QrizB

P1Fanatic said:

Interesting thanks. I am struggling to find the specifics in the pensions act - any pointers?

Open the full text of the Act, then search the pdf for "prescribed period".

dunstonh

The use of the term "prescribed period"  in the act and consultations allows for easier changes later on.

So, when looking for definitive information, you are actually looking at multiple acts of parliament, so you find yourself going down a rabbit hole as you move from the original act to later amendments.  

For example, taken from the PERSONAL PENSION SCHEMES (PAYMENTS BY EMPLOYERS) REGULATIONS 2000

Prescribed period for the purpose of calculating the due date for the payment of any contribution on behalf of an employee
5. For the purposes of section 111A(15)(b) of the 1993 Act (meaning of “due date” where a contribution payable under the direct payment arrangements falls to be paid on behalf of the employee) the prescribed period is the period of 19 days commencing on the day following the last day of the month in which the deduction was made from the employee’s earnings.

Or the Occupational Pension Schemes (Scheme Administration) Regulations 1996 as amended by regulation 48 of the Occupational and Personal Pension Schemes (Automatic Enrolment) Regulations 2010. 

You have many changes over the years but, for simplicity, the workplace pensions reform 2012 aligned the 22 days with HMRC.  That was enacted in The Automatic Enrolment (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2013 

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5a7c686040f0b62aff6c1744/ae-misc-amendments-regs-final-2013.pdf

grumpsthegit

I get paid on the last working day each month and the payments hit the pension provider between the 20th and 22nd of the following month so someone is clearly timing it till the last moment - cheapskates!

penners324

Upto the 22nd of the month, also up to the payroll person who enters the details in the pension company portal and what date is selected for the DD.

Once worked for a company who's payroll outsourced was utterly useless. They hadn't lodged pension deductions with the pension company for 6 months and 2 or 3 employees who weren't even enrolled in the scheme a year after they joined (pension deductions were being made though). We eventually brought payroll in house, took me a week or so to rectify all this 'errors".

penners324

grumpsthegit said:

I get paid on the last working day each month and the payments hit the pension provider between the 20th and 22nd of the following month so someone is clearly timing it till the last moment - cheapskates!

Your employer

JoeCrystal

Beside it is only reportable if it is more than 90 days late so my employer tend to wait until then. I generally see my pension contributions appears roughly 80 to 89 days after it get deducted from payslip.

stephen96

I also have some concerns about the delay in my contributions arriving in my pension account. Sometimes it takes 4 weeks. However what makes me very angry is the fact that I make salary sacrifice pension contributions and I do this to help avoid falling into 40% tax band. I see this extra contribution as my money yet my money seems to vanish for up to 4 weeks. I put all bonus payments into my pension as well at the end of October payday in 31st a deduction of nearly £4000 will be going into my pension and for 4 week it is invisible to me. My employer blames Scottish Widows HR blames Scottish Widows and our workplace finanace adviser says its SW. I think my employer is the source fo the proble and that adviser takes his turn at holding my money too.....they have me by the shorts and curlies because the tax planning side to it is beneficial to me so as to prevent me from taking action to stop salary sacrifice. Rock and a hard place

Dazed_and_C0nfused

stephen96 said:

I also have some concerns about the delay in my contributions arriving in my pension account. Sometimes it takes 4 weeks. However what makes me very angry is the fact that I make salary sacrifice pension contributions and I do this to help avoid falling into 40% tax band. I see this extra contribution as my money yet my money seems to vanish for up to 4 weeks. I put all bonus payments into my pension as well at the end of October payday in 31st a deduction of nearly £4000 will be going into my pension and for 4 week it is invisible to me. My employer blames Scottish Widows HR blames Scottish Widows and our workplace finanace adviser says its SW. I think my employer is the source fo the proble and that adviser takes his turn at holding my money too.....they have me by the shorts and curlies because the tax planning side to it is beneficial to me so as to prevent me from taking action to stop salary sacrifice. Rock and a hard place

I think they have until 22nd of the next month to send the money to the pension company.

https://www.gov.uk/employers-workplace-pensions-rules

P1Fanatic

stephen96 said:

I also have some concerns about the delay in my contributions arriving in my pension account. Sometimes it takes 4 weeks. However what makes me very angry is the fact that I make salary sacrifice pension contributions and I do this to help avoid falling into 40% tax band. I see this extra contribution as my money yet my money seems to vanish for up to 4 weeks. I put all bonus payments into my pension as well at the end of October payday in 31st a deduction of nearly £4000 will be going into my pension and for 4 week it is invisible to me. My employer blames Scottish Widows HR blames Scottish Widows and our workplace finanace adviser says its SW. I think my employer is the source fo the proble and that adviser takes his turn at holding my money too.....they have me by the shorts and curlies because the tax planning side to it is beneficial to me so as to prevent me from taking action to stop salary sacrifice. Rock and a hard place

4 weeks sounds a lot. My payday is the last working day of the month (so 30th Sept last month) and my pension payment via salary sacrifice arrived on Oct 17th.

FIREDreamer

Retired now, but my payday was the 25th (or previous working day if a weekend or bank holiday) and the money was pretty much always in the (Aviva) pension by the last working day of the same month.