If you employ at least one person, you're an employer and have certain legal duties. Here we explain what you need to do for workplace pensions and automatic enrolment.

The Basics - Automatic Enrolment

Automatic enrolment is a government initiative regulated by The Pensions Regulator (TPR). It exists to help people save for their retirement through a pension scheme at work.

The Pensions Act 2008

In the UK, employers must enrol certain staff into a workplace pension scheme. The employer must also contribute towards it. This is automatic enrolment.

If you're an employer, your legal duties begin on the day your first employee starts to work for you. This is your duties start date.

Initial pension set up tasks

If you're an employer who has to provide a pension, you must complete these tasks:

1. Choose a pension scheme.
2. Work out who to put into a pension scheme.
3. Write to your staff.
4. Declare your compliance.

The TPR website can help you with each of these steps.

Read their article I'm an employer who has to provide a pension at thepensionsregulator.gov. 

Ongoing duties

Automatic enrolment is a continuous responsibility. Your duties don't end after your duties start date.

• Each time you pay your staff you must check their age and earnings to see if they need to enrolling into your scheme
• Every three years you must conduct re-enrolment to put back in any staff who have left your scheme. Find out more about Pension re-enrolment
  
  NOTE:

  Your payroll program takes care of these two steps for you.

• You need to continue paying into your pension scheme
• Manage requests to join or leave the scheme
• keep records

The TPR website can give you detailed information about your duties.

• Read their article Ongoing duties for employers.

Using Sage Payroll

You can set up and use Sage Payroll to help you with automatic enrolment. We've got everything you need to know about how to set up your pension for each provider on the links below. Select your provider.

• Add a Nest pension scheme
• Add a NOW: Pensions scheme
• Add The People's Pension scheme
  
• Add a Smart Pension scheme
• Add a custom pension scheme