What is pension re-enrolment, and what must an employer do?

Automatic enrolment is not a one-off exercise completed when the pension scheme is first set up. Every three years, employers must revisit certain staff who have left the scheme or stopped qualifying contributions and assess whether they need to be put back in. This gives eligible staff another opportunity to save through a workplace pension. It does not mean every employee needs a new pension account or that existing active members should be enrolled twice. Start with the employer's duties history and scheme records. The relevant anniversary and any previous re-enrolment exercise determine the timetable, rather than the company's financial year end.

Review staff who may fall within the re-enrolment duty and check their age, earnings and pension position on the relevant assessment date. Some circumstances are subject to exceptions or employer discretion, so avoid assuming every previous opt-out must be treated identically. Keep the dates when staff opted out or ceased membership, together with contribution information. Those details can affect the decision. The assessment needs current payroll information, rather than a list copied from the original enrolment. Staff who remain active members normally continue under their existing arrangements. Document the outcome for each person considered so you can explain why action was or was not required.

Where re-enrolment is required, arrange scheme membership, payroll contributions and the necessary employee communications within the applicable deadlines. Re-enrolled staff retain their statutory rights, including the ability to opt out through the proper scheme process. Employers must not pressure them to do so. Separately, complete the re-declaration of compliance with The Pensions Regulator. This is required even if the assessment identifies nobody who needs to be re-enrolled. A payroll update does not automatically submit that declaration. Confirm who is responsible for each step, check the deadline and retain submission evidence. Treat assessment, scheme changes, communications and the declaration as connected but distinct tasks.

Keep the re-enrolment date, declaration deadline, employee assessment records and scheme correspondence together. Confirm the next cycle after the current exercise, rather than waiting for a reminder to start gathering information. Normal pension duties continue between these reviews, including assessing relevant staff through payroll and paying contributions on time. CASS can discuss the payroll and administrative steps included in your agreed service. Responsibility should be confirmed where the employer, payroll provider and pension provider each handle different tasks. If nobody is being re-enrolled, still check that the required declaration has been completed. A quiet pension month does not establish that the recurring compliance work is finished.