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The Pensions (2008 No. 2 Act) (Commencement No. 9) Order (Northern Ireland) 2012

S.R. 2012/266 · Made 29 June 2012

Original text. legislation.gov.uk does not revise statutory instruments, so later amendments are not shown here. Changes made to it are listed under each provision when known.

Pensions

Made 29th June 2012

The Department for Social Development makes the following Order in exercise of the powers conferred by section 118(1) of the Pensions (No. 2) Act (Northern Ireland) 2008f1.

Annotations to the whole text

Footnotes

f1

2008 c. 13 (N.I.)

Contents

  1. 1Citation and interpretation
  2. 2Commencement of provisions
  3. Signature
  4. Schedule
  5. 1Provisions of the Act coming into operation on 30th June 2012 in so far as they are not already in operation
  6. 2Provisions of the Act coming into operation on 30th June 2012
  7. Explanatory note

1Citation and interpretation

(1)

This Order may be cited as the Pensions (2008 No. 2 Act) (Commencement No. 9) Order (Northern Ireland) 2012.

(2)

In this Order “the Act” means the Pensions (No. 2) Act (Northern Ireland) 2008.

2Commencement of provisions

The following provisions of the Act shall come into operation on 30th June 2012—

(a)

the provisions specified in Part 1 of the Schedule, in so far as they are not already in operation, and

(b)

the provisions specified in Part 2 of the Schedule.

Signature

Sealed with the Official Seal of the Department for Social Development on 29th June 2012

(L.S.)

Anne McCleary

A senior officer of the Department for Social Development

1Provisions of the Act coming into operation on 30th June 2012 in so far as they are not already in operation

Provisions of the ActSubject matter
Section 2f1Continuity of scheme membership
Section 3f2Automatic enrolment
Section 5f3Automatic re-enrolment
Section 6f4Timing of automatic re-enrolment
Section 7f5Jobholder’s right to opt in
Section 8Jobholder’s right to opt out
Section 9Workers without qualifying earnings
Section 10Information to be given to workers
Section 13f6Qualifying earnings
Section 15Pay reference period
Section 16f7Qualifying schemes
Section 17Automatic enrolment schemes
Section 18Occupational pension schemes
Section 20f8Quality requirement: UK money purchase schemes
Section 21Quality requirement: UK defined benefits schemes
Section 22f9Test scheme standard
Section 24Quality requirement: UK hybrid schemes
Section 26f10Quality requirement: UK personal pension schemes
Section 29Transitional periods for money purchase and personal pension schemes
Section 30f11Transitional period for defined benefits and hybrid schemes
Section 32f12Power of trustees or managers to modify by resolution
Section 33Deduction of contributions
Section 37Unpaid contributions notices
Section 38Calculation and payment of contributions
Section 40f13, except for subsection (1)(d) which is commenced for the purpose only of the exercise of the Regulator’s functions under Part 1 of the ActFixed penalty notices
Section 41f14, except for subsection (1)(d) which is commenced for the purpose only of the exercise of the Regulator’s functions under Part 1 of the ActEscalating penalty notices
Section 43Review of notices
Section 49Monitoring of employers’ payments to personal pension schemes
Section 52Penalty notices
Section 54f15Inducements
Section 58Restrictions on agreements to limit operation of this Part

2Provisions of the Act coming into operation on 30th June 2012

Provisions of the ActSubject matter
Section 1Jobholders
Section 19Personal pension schemes
Section 31Effect of freezing order or assessment period
Section 34Effect of failure to comply
Section 35Compliance notices
Section 36Third party compliance notices
Section 39Meaning of “relevant contributions”
Section 42Penalty notices: recovery
Section 44f1References to First-tier Tribunal or Upper Tribunal
Section 45Offences of failing to comply
Section 46Offences by bodies corporate
Section 47Offences by partnerships and unincorporated associations
Section 48Offences of providing false or misleading information
Section 50Prohibited recruitment conduct
Section 51Compliance notices
Section 53f2Review of notices and references to the First-tier Tribunal or Upper Tribunal
Section 55The right not to suffer detriment
Section 56Enforcement of the right
Section 57, except for subsection (3)Right of employee not to be unfairly dismissed
Section 60Powers to require information and to enter premises
Section 64Functions of the Pensions Ombudsman
Section 70“Employer”, “worker” and related expressions
Section 71Agency workers
Section 72Directors
Section 73Crown employment
Section 74Armed forces
Section 75Police
Section 76Persons working on vessels

Explanatory note

(This note is not part of the Order)

This Order brings into operation certain provisions of the Pensions (No. 2) Act (Northern Ireland) 2008 (“the Act”), as amended by the Pensions Act (Northern Ireland) 2012 (c. 3 (N.I.)), on 30th June 2012 to give effect to the introduction of the automatic enrolment duties set out in the Act.

The requirement in Chapter 1 of Part 1 of the Act (sections 1 to 33) to enrol certain workers (referred to in the Act as “jobholders”) into a pension scheme which meets the minimum standards specified in the Act will apply to employers in stages starting with the largest first, from 1st October 2012 onwards. However, from 1st July 2012 the Occupational and Personal Pension Schemes (Automatic Enrolment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2010 (S.R. 2010 No. 122) provide that the largest employers will be able to enrol their workers into a pension scheme early, in line with the duties set out in the Act.

Chapter 2 of Part 1 of the Act (sections 34 to 49) sets out the regime for ensuring compliance with the automatic enrolment duties.

Chapter 3 of Part 1 of the Act (sections 50 to 58) sets out safeguards during the recruitment process and during employment to ensure that an employee’s rights to become and remain a member of a qualifying pension scheme are protected.

Section 60 sets out requirements in relation to record keeping and compliance.

Section 64 gives the Pensions Ombudsman the additional function of investigating complaints relating to a jobholder opting out of pension scheme membership.

Chapter 7 of Part 1 of the Act (sections 70 to 78) sets out how the automatic enrolment duties apply to particular types of worker, and defines the terms “employer”, “worker” and related expressions for the purposes of the Act.