An employer’s Duties Start Date is the date their first worker begins to be employed.
Employers can postpone assessing staff for up to 3 months from their Duties Start Date or from the employee’s start date if they are a new employee.
Postponement does not change the legal duties start date however.
The employer must still perform their duties such as notifying workers within 6 weeks of the duties start date that they have been postponed.
For eligible workers starting after the duties start date they can be postponed from their employment start date. They must still be notified within 6 weeks of starting.
Workers are eligible to Opt In to the scheme during the postponement period.
Duties Timetable
The below shows a chronology of an employer’s duties:
| Duty | Deadline | Notes |
| Choose a Pension Scheme | Before Duties Start Date | o Find a suitable scheme: be sure to consider costs, compatibility with payroll system, tax implications for employees.
o Most productions use specialist schemes run by large providers. o Ensure the provider has been independently reviewed or regulated by the FCA. o Look into the different schemes available before making final decision. |
| Assess Staff | Duties Start Date | o Assess workers to determine who needs to be put into a scheme.
o At this point you can postpone for up to 3 months. |
| Write to Staff | Within 6 weeks of Duties Start Date/Employee’s Start Date | o Within 6 weeks of the Duties Start Date you must write to staff to explain how auto-enrolment applies to them.
o If postponement applies you must also write to them within 6 weeks of the start date to explain about postponement. |
| Complete Declaration of Compliance | Within 5 months of Duties Start Date | o Employer’s have a legal duty to complete the Declaration of Compliance to show how they are meeting their auto-enrolment duties.
o It can only be completed once the employer has both a letter code from the Pensions Regulator and a PAYE reference. o If it isn’t completed within 5 months of the Duties Start Date the employer could be fined. |
