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Category Archives: Auto Enrolment


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National Minimum Wage & Pensions rise from April 2019

From 1 April 2019 the minimum hourly pay rates along with the minimum contributions for auto-enrolment pensions will increase affecting both employees and employers.

First let’s look at the National Minimum Wages rates:

National Living Wage (NLW) rates (for those over 25 years old) and National Minimum Wage (NMW) rates (for those under 25 years old) will rise from 1 April 2019.

The NLW increase of 38p represents a 4.8% rise, equivalent to an annual increase of about £700 for a full-time worker.

In summary and effective 1 April 2019 the follow minimum wage rates will apply

Year 25 and over 21 to 24 18 to 20 Under 18 Apprentice *
April 2018 £7.83 £7.38 £5.90 £4.20 £3.70
April 2019 (new rates) £8.21 £7.70 £6.15 £4.35 £3.90

* The apprentice rate is for apprentices aged 16 to 18 and those aged 19 or over who are in their first year. All other apprentices are entitled to the National Minimum Wage for their age.

The Government has previously said it plans to raise the national living wage to at least £9 per hour by 2020.

Ensure your payroll procedures are up to date. For further details and more rates visit gov.uk

 

Pension contribution rates increase from April 2019

If you employ staff and run a pension scheme the minimum contributions rates are increasing from April 2019. This has long been the intention of The Pension Regulator (TPR) and is the last increase of “phasing”. The increases are as follows:

  • Employer minimum pension contribution 3% (from 2%), staff contribution 5% (from 3%).

If we provide your payroll services then we will of course implement the increased rates on your behalf but because this represents an increased cost for both employer and employee we highly recommend that you let your staff know in advance of this change. To do so you may like to use this TPR letter template.

Source info and more detail: http://www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk/en/employers/phasing-increase-of-automatic-enrolment-contribution

 

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Pension contribution rates increase from April 2018

If you employ staff and run a pension scheme the minimum contributions rates are increasing from April 2018 as set-out in the table below. This has long been the intention of The Pension Regulator (TPR) and is known as phasing.

 

 

Date Employer minimum contribution Staff contribution Total minimum contribution
Until 5 April 2018 1% 1% 2%
6 April 2018 to 5 April 2019 2% 3% 5%
6 April 2019 onwards 3% 5% 8%

If we provide your payroll services then we will of course implement the increased rates on your behalf but because this represents an increased cost for both employer and employee we highly recommend that you let your staff know in advance of this change. To do so you may like to use this TPR letter template.

Source info: http://www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk/en/employers/phasing-increase-of-automatic-enrolment-contribution

Enjoy saving tax?

We have two videos to help on ourYouTube-logo-full_colorchannel; and for regular tax-tips follow our blog on Google+ or click +Follow at the bottom of this page.


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What happens if you don’t comply with Automatic Enrolment?

What happens if you don’t comply with Automatic Enrolment or you miss your staging date?

The Pension Regulator will initially focus on educating employers who miss their staging date deadline however persistent and deliberate non-compliance can lead to penalties of between £50 – £10,000 per day. Ultimately criminal prosecution can ensue. For more information please visit The Pension Regulator.

For those who get around to meeting their duties only after their staging date has passed then the consequences include, at a minimum, additional admin and professional fees, and you will be required to back-date any missed contributions (in some cases you may also need to pay the late employees contributions on their behalf).

Massey Accounting Company is starting its communication with each of its employers between 6 – 12 months before their staging date. If you need any help or just a have a question, please don’t hesitate to let us know.

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We have two videos to help on ourYouTube-logo-full_colorchannel; and for regular tax-tips follow our blog on Google+ or click +Follow at the bottom of this page.


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Run a payroll? Then you’re probably required to offer a workplace pension

Run a payroll? Then you’re probably required to offer a workplace pension

You may have seen the TV adverts “We’re all in”. Under Auto Enrolment (AE) all employers are required to offer workplace pensions. Larger employers will have now enrolled their employees. For most micro employers (fewer than 50 employees) your staging date will be any time from now until 2017.

So what do you need to do?

We have compiled a list of staging dates for all our current payroll clients. If we’ve not yet contacted you yet that’s because your staging date is over 12 months away.

Approximately 18 months before your staging date every employer will receive a letter from the Pensions Regulator with you staging date and your letter code. Please forward a copy of that letter to us. We’re happy to become your secondary contact, the primary one being you the employer.

There’s much to consider and we’ll be holding meetings with nearly all of our payroll clients’ within the next 12 months. Alternatively you may prefer to approach an IFA about your company’s pension requirements. Either way – please keep us informed.

We look forward to guiding you through AE. It’s something new to all of us!

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