Finance Act 2000

Eligibility to make contributions E+W+S+N.I.

8 (1) After section 632 insert— E+W+S+N.I.

“632A Eligibility to make contributions.

(1) The Board shall not approve a personal pension scheme if it permits, in relation to arrangements made by a member in accordance with the scheme, the acceptance of—

(a) contributions by the member, or

(b) contributions by an employer of the member,

at a time when the member is not eligible to make contributions.

(2) The Board shall not approve a personal pension scheme unless it makes provision for ensuring, in relation to any such arrangements, that any contributions accepted at a time when the member is not eligible to make contributions are repaid—

(a) to the member, to the extent of his contributions; and

(b) as to the remainder, to his employer.

(3) The following provisions of this section, and the provisions of section 632B, have effect for determining for the purposes of subsections (1) and (2) above the times at which a member is eligible to make contributions (and, for those purposes, a member is not eligible to make contributions at any other time).

(4) A member is eligible to make contributions at any time during a year of assessment for which he has actual net relevant earnings.

(5) A member who does not have actual net relevant earnings for a year of assessment (“the relevant year”) is eligible to make contributions at any time during that year if—

(a) for at least some part of the year he does not hold an office or employment to which section 645 applies; and

(b) the condition in any of subsections (6) to (9) below is satisfied.

(6) Condition A is that at some time in the relevant year the member is resident and ordinarily resident in the United Kingdom.

(7) Condition B is that the member—

(a) at some time during the five years of assessment preceding the relevant year, has been resident and ordinarily resident in the United Kingdom; and

(b) was resident and ordinarily resident in the United Kingdom when he made the personal pension arrangements in question.

(8) Condition C is that at some time in the relevant year the member is a person who performs duties which, by virtue of section 132(4)(a), are treated as being performed in the United Kingdom.

(9) Condition D is that at some time in the relevant year the member is the spouse of a person who performs such duties as are mentioned in subsection (8) above.

632B Eligibility to make contributions: concurrent membership.

(1) A member who would not, apart from this section, be eligible to make contributions during a year of assessment shall be eligible to make contributions at any time during that year if—

(a) throughout the year he holds an office or employment to which section 645 applies;

(b) the condition in any of subsections (6) to (9) of section 632A is satisfied in his case as respects the year;

(c) he is not, and has not been, a controlling director of a company at any time in the year or in any of the five years of assessment preceding it;

(d) for at least one of the five years of assessment preceding the year, the aggregate of his grossed-up remuneration from each office and each employment held on 5th April in that preceding year does not exceed the remuneration limit for the relevant year; and

(e) the total relevant contributions made in the year do not exceed the earnings threshold for the year.

(2) For the purposes of paragraphs (c) and (d) of subsection (1) above, no account shall be taken of any year of assessment earlier than the year 2000-01.

(3) For the purposes of paragraph (c) of subsection (1) above, a person is a controlling director of a company at any time if at that time—

(a) he is a director, as defined by section 612(1); and

(b) he is within paragraph (b) of section 417(5) in relation to the company.

(4) For the purposes of paragraph (d) of subsection (1) above—

(a) “grossed up”, in relation to a person’s remuneration from an office or employment, means increased by being multiplied by a figure determined in accordance with an order made by the Treasury (or left unchanged, if that figure is unity);

(b) “remuneration” shall be construed in accordance with an order made by the Treasury;

(c) “the remuneration limit" for any year of assessment is £30,000;

(d) “the relevant year” means the year of assessment first mentioned in subsection (1) above.

The Treasury may by order amend the definition of “the remuneration limit" in paragraph (c) above for any year of assessment by varying the amount there specified.

(5) For the purposes of paragraph (e) of subsection (1) above and the following provisions of this section, “the total relevant contributions”, in the case of a year of assessment, means the aggregate amount of the contributions made in the year—

(a) by the member in question, and

(b) by any employer of his,

under arrangements made by the member under the scheme in question, together with the aggregate amounts of such contributions under other approved personal pension arrangements made by that member.

(6) If—

(a) in the case of a member, the total relevant contributions in a year of assessment, apart from this subsection, exceed the earnings threshold for the year, and

(b) but for that, the member would be eligible to make contributions by virtue of subsection (1) above at any time in that year,

the repayment required by subsection (2) of section 632A is repayment of the relevant excess contributions only (so that the condition in subsection (1)(e) above becomes satisfied).

(7) In subsection (6) above “the relevant excess contributions” means—

(a) to the extent that a contribution is the first which caused the total relevant contributions in the year to exceed the earnings threshold for the year, that contribution; and

(b) all subsequent contributions in the year.

(8) The Treasury may by order make provision requiring any person who claims to be eligible to make contributions by virtue of this section to provide to—

(a) the Board,

(b) an officer of the Board, or

(c) the scheme administrator of the personal pension scheme concerned,

such declarations, certificates or other evidence in support of the claim as may be specified or described in, or determined in accordance with, the order.

(9) A person shall only be eligible to make contributions by virtue of this section in a year of assessment if he complies with any requirements imposed by order under subsection (8) above.”.

(2) This paragraph has effect on and after 6th April 2001.