Pension question

[ambereeree]

Can somebody please help with this. MIL is still working past pension age and doesn't want to pay into her work pension scheme. She's only part time and is working through a contractor. She's asked me to call her payroll to tell them. Are there any issues with this? Will it affect her tax code? Thanks to anyone who can help. She's 67.

At what age does her occupational pension kick in?
If it's 65 then she is basically deferring her pension and payments into it stop.

Sorry, i was presuming she is in the uk. If she is not the rules will almost certainly be different.

Yes she's in the UK. I think her state pension would have started at the end of last year.

Her payroll will not take notice of anything except what she says. And writes.

Are you talking about the government workplace pension automatic enrolment scheme if so you don't get automatically enrolled after state pension age, her payroll should have mentioned this to her, mine did and advised me to keep paying in as I will get tax relief but it was my decision to keep in the scheme, as for her tax code I don't think it affects the actual code, but if she is getting her state pension as well as her wages her SP amount will be deducted from her tax free allowance so depending on both sums she will be paying more tax so having tax relief on pension payments should be a bonus I would have thought

Hi @ambereeree we've moved your thread over to the Money Matters section where hopefully some helpful Mumsnetters will be a long with some useful advice.

Why doesn't she want to pay in? Is it because she can't afford the contributions or another reason?

Is she aware that she's effectively giving away free money in the form of employer contributions and tax relief if she doesn't join?

You say she works part time - does she earn more than £10k pa because below that she wouldn't necessarily be auto enroled anyway.

Has she got proper advice on this, for example:

www.pensionsadvisoryservice.org.uk/about-pensions/pensions-basics/automatic-enrolment/opting-out

You can opt out of your pension scheme but you have to be the one to inform them not a proxy. She could still contribute and receive the employers contributions and tax relief though.

@echt she doesn't speak or write good English so had asked for my help.

@BarbaraofSeville she just doesn't see the point of paying in anymore. Her job is more a hobby. She doesn't earn more than 10k.

@BarbaraofSeville I didn't know that the contributions are tax relief. I will tell her this. I need to speak to her payroll to ask what the company contribution is because she doesn't know.

I recently changed my work pension ( to increase)

I wrote to the work place pension company
Pension company sent me a form to fill in
I completed the form
Pension company sent me a letter confirming the change

No interaction with HR at all

@Cc0medy5 thank you.

Why not pay still pay in? Tax relief on the contribution, employer contribution, can take the money out again (some taxable depending on her total income). As a lower rate tax payer the benefit to her may be the employer contribution which she would not get if she opts out.

People can continue investing in retirement, though up to them if they decide not to do so. Podcast/video on the topic if you want more info: meaningfulmoney.tv/UG8

She will need to be aware that she may be giving up a generous death in service benefit if she does opt out.

It is likely that payroll will require completion of a form to opt out.

@nannynick she thinks it's time to withdraw the pension not keep paying. But I'm going to explain about the tax relief.

If she is earning why would she need to take the pension money out?

When she stops work then she wants to take money out.

Ask her to check she's not paying NI now.