Taxation of pension contributions ― overview

Produced by Tolley in association with

Employment Tax

Guidance

STOP PRESS: The remittance basis is to be abolished from 6 April 2025, although this only applies to foreign income and gains arising on or after that date. The remittance basis rules still apply to unremitted income and gains arising before that date but remitted later. The legislation is included in Finance Bill 2025. For more details, see the Abolition of the remittance basis from 2025/26 guidance note.

Introduction

For many years the UK has operated a system which encourages private pension provision through a system of tax reliefs.

Pensions taxation lifecycle

The taxation life cycle of private pension arrangements can broadly be divided into three stages. At each point there are tax implications for the member and, where applicable, the member’s employer.

Contributions ― payments are made into a fund. These payments are made by the individual members and, in many cases, by their employer as well. If the scheme is funded by contributions from the employer only, it is known as a ‘non-contributory scheme’.

The UK system is

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David Everett

Partner, Lane Clark & Peacock , Employment Tax

David Everett, is the head of the Pensions Research team at LCP. One of his key roles is to analyse and communicate regulatory and professional developments to audiences both within and outside LCP.David has built up many years of experience in the occupational pensions regulatory field covering a broad spectrum including government policy and legislation, particularly that emanating from the Department for Work and Pensions, the Pensions Regulator, the Pension Protection Fund and other compensation schemes, the Pensions Ombudsman and the Courts and the technical and ethical regulation of actuaries through the Financial Reporting Council and the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries respectively.He also assists the ACA in responding to government consultations.He's the editor of LCP's weekly Pensions Bulletin and undertakes other technical writing for the firm, as well as contributing to TolleyGuidance Employment taxes for the Pensions module.

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