The Personal Pension Schemes (Restriction on Discretion to Approve) (Establishment of Schemes under Trusts) Regulations 2000

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations impose a restriction on the Board of Inland Revenue’s discretion to approve some personal pension schemes. The schemes affected are those established under trusts by persons other than those mentioned in paragraphs (a) to (e) of section 632(1) of the Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1988 (c. 1). The Board may approve such schemes only if the condition in either paragraph (2) or (3) of regulation 3 is satisfied.

The condition in paragraph (2) consists of two elements. The first is that, for the purposes of the Pensions Act 1995 (c. 26) or the Pensions (Northern Ireland) Order 1995 (S.I. 1995/3213), the scheme is an occupational pension scheme established under a trust. This second is a requirement that the trust deed contains provision for the appointment by the Board of an independent trustee in the event that there are at any time fewer than twelve members receiving benefits under the scheme.

The condition in paragraph (3) is that an application has been made for the registration of the scheme (by the Occupational Pensions Regulatory Authority) as a stakeholder pension scheme within the meaning of section 2 of the Welfare Reforms and Pensions Act 1999 (c. 30) or article 4 of the Welfare Reform and Pensions (Northern Ireland) Order 1999 (S.I. 1999/3147), and the Board’s approval is to be conditional on registration.