Pension Sharing (Pension Credit Benefit) Regulations 2000
| Year | 2000 |
2000 No. 1054
PENSIONS
The Pension Sharing (Pension Credit Benefit) Regulations 2000
Made 13th April 2000
Laid before Parliament 19th April 2000
Coming into force 1st December 2000
The Secretary of State for Social Security, in exercise of the powers conferred upon him by sections 68D, 101C(2), 101D(1)(b), (2)(b) and (4)(b), 101E(2), 101F(2)(b), (c), (3)(b), and (6)(b), 101H(2)(a) and (b), and (3), 101I, 101J(2), 101L(1), (2)(a) and (b), and (3), 101P(2)(b), 101Q, 181(1)1and 182(2) and (3) of the Pension Schemes Act 19932, sections 10(2)(b), 124(1)3and 174(2) and (3) of the Pensions Act 19954, and sections 40(1) and (3) and 83(4) and (6) of the Welfare Reform and Pensions Act 19995and of all other powers enabling him in that behalf, after consulting such persons as he considered appropriate6, hereby makes the following Regulations:
PART I
GENERAL
Citation, commencement and interpretation
1.—(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Pension Sharing (Pension Credit Benefit) Regulations 2000 and shall come into force on 1st December 2000.
(2) In these Regulations—
“the 1993 Act” means the Pension Schemes Act 1993;
“the 1995 Act” means the Pensions Act 1995;
“the 1999 Act” means the Welfare Reform and Pensions Act 1999;
“the Taxes Act” means the Income and Corporation Taxes Act 19887;
“active member”, in relation to an occupational pension scheme, means a person who is in pensionable service under the scheme;
“appropriate scheme” shall be construed in accordance with section 9(5) of the 1993 Act;
“base rate” means the base rate for the time being quoted by the reference banks or, where there is for the time being more than one such base rate, the base rate which, when the base rate quoted by each bank is ranked in a descending sequence of seven, is fourth in the sequence;
“contracted-out rights” has the meaning given by section 68A(5) of the 1993 Act8;
“eligible member” has the meaning given by section 101P(1) of the 1993 Act9;
“employer” has the meaning given by section 181(1) of the 1993 Act;
“incapacity” means physical or mental deterioration which is sufficiently serious to prevent a person from following his normal employment or which seriously impairs his earning capacity;
“the Inland Revenue” means the Commissioners of Inland Revenue;
“member” means a member of an occupational pension scheme or a personal pension scheme and includes an eligible member;
“money purchase benefits” has the meaning given by section 181(1) of the 1993 Act10
“money purchase contracted-out scheme” has the meaning given by section 8(1)(a)(ii) of the 1993 Act;
“money purchase scheme” has the meaning given by section 181(1) of the 1993 Act;
“normal benefit age” has the meaning given by section 101B of the 1993 Act11;
“occupational pension scheme” has the meaning given by section 1 of the 1993 Act;
“overseas arrangement” has the meaning given by regulation 1(2) of the Contracting-out (Transfer and Transfer Payment) Regulations 199612;
“overseas scheme” has the meaning given by regulation 1(2) of the Contracting-out (Transfer and Transfer Payment) Regulations 199613;
“pension credit benefit” has the meaning given by—
(a) section 101B of the 1993 Act insofar as that expression is used in Part II of these Regulations; and
(b) section 101P of the 1993 Act insofar as that expression is used in Part III of these Regulations;
“pension credit rights” has the meaning given by—
(a) section 101B of the 1993 Act insofar as that expression is used in Part II of these Regulations; and
(b) section 101P of the 1993 Act insofar as that expression is used in Part III of these Regulations;
“pensionable service” has the meaning given by section 124(1) of the Pensions Act 199514;
“personal pension scheme” has the meaning given by section 1 of the 1993 Act15;
“principal appointed day” has the meaning given by section 7(2B) of the 1993 Act16;
“qualifying occupational pension scheme” has the meaning given by section 40(3) of the 1999 Act;
“qualifying scheme” has the meaning given by section 101P(1) of the 1993 Act;
“the reference banks” means the seven largest institutions for the time being which—
(a) are authorised by the Bank of England under the Banking Act 198717;
(b) are incorporated in and carrying on within the United Kingdom a deposit-taking business (as defined in section 6, but subject to any order under section 7 of that Act18; and
(c) quote a base rate in sterling;
and for the purpose of this definition the size of an institution at any time is to be determined by reference to the gross assets denominated in sterling of that institution, together with any subsidiary (as defined in section 736 of the Companies Act 198519), as shown in the audited end of year accounts last published before that time;
“Regulatory Authority” means the Occupational Pensions Regulatory Authority;
“relevant pension” means a pension to which section 40(2) of the 1999 Act applies;
“safeguarded rights” has the meaning given by section 68A of the 1993 Act20;
“salary related contracted-out scheme” has the meaning given by section 8(1)(a)(i) of the 1993 Act21
“scheme” has the meaning given by section 101B of the 1993 Act22;
“statement of entitlement” means the statement of the amount of the cash equivalent of an eligible member’s pension credit benefit under a qualifying scheme referred to in section 101H(1) of the 1993 Act;
“transfer credits” means rights allowed to a person under the rules of an occupational or personal pension scheme by reference to a transfer to that scheme of his accrued rights from another scheme (including any transfer credits allowed by that scheme);
“transfer notice” has the meaning given by section 101F(7) of the 1993 Act;
“trustees or managers” has the meaning given by section 46(1) of the 1999 Act;
“valuation date” has the meaning given by section 101J(7) of the 1993 Act.
Salary related schemes
2. For the purposes of Chapter II of Part IVA of the 1993 Act23(requirements relating to pension credit benefit—transfer values) and these Regulations, an occupational pension scheme is salary related if it is not a money purchase scheme and it is not a scheme—
(a) the only benefit provided by which (other than money purchase benefits) are death benefits; and
(b) under the provisions of which no member has accrued rights (other than rights to money purchase benefits).
PART II
PENSION CREDIT BENEFIT UNDER OCCUPATIONAL PENSION SCHEMES
Commutation of the whole of pension credit benefit
3.—(1) Subject to paragraphs (3) and (4) and regulation 9 of the Pension Sharing (Safeguarded Rights) Regulations 200024(ways of giving effect to safeguarded rights—salary related schemes), the circumstances in which the whole of the pension credit benefit may be commuted for the purposes of section 101C(2) of the 1993 Act (payment of pension credit benefit in the form of a lump sum before normal benefit age) are those described in paragraph (2).
(2) The circumstances described in this paragraph are that—
(a)
(a) the person entitled to the pension credit benefit is suffering from serious ill health prior to normal benefit age; or
(b)
(b) the aggregate of total benefits payable to the person under an occupational pension scheme, including any pension credit benefit, does not exceed £260 per annum.
(3) This regulation does not apply to an occupational pension scheme which is approved under section 590 of the Taxes Act25(mandatory approval).
(4) In this regulation, “serious ill health” means ill health which is such as to give rise to a life expectancy of less than one year from the date on which commutation of the pension credit benefit is applied for.
Commutation of part of pension credit benefit
4.—(1) Subject to paragraphs (2) and (3) and regulation 9 of the Pension Sharing (Safeguarded Rights) Regulations 2000, the circumstances in which part of the pension credit benefit may be commuted for the purposes of section 101C(2) of the 1993 Act (payment of pension credit benefit in the form of a lump sum before normal benefit age) are—
(a)
(a) that the person entitled to the pension credit benefit—
(i) subject to paragraph (2), is suffering from an incapacity prior to normal benefit age; or
(ii) has reached the age of 50; and
(b)
(b) that the commutation would not prevent approval or continuing approval of the scheme under section 591 of the Taxes Act26(discretionary approval).
(2) Paragraph (1)(a)(i) applies where the person entitled to the pension credit benefit—
(a)
(a) is an active member of the occupational pension scheme in which his pension credit rights are held; and
(b)
(b) has become entitled to the early payment of benefits derived from his accrued rights, other than his pension credit rights, in that scheme as a result of his incapacity prior to normal benefit age.
(3) Safeguarded rights which are held in a money purchase contracted-out scheme shall not be commuted where the circumstances specified in paragraph (1)(a) apply.
(4) This regulation does not apply to an occupational pension scheme which is approved under section 590 of the Taxes Act.
Means of assuring pension credit benefit
5.—(1) The prescribed means by which a person’s pension credit benefit under a scheme must be assured for the purposes of section 101D(1)(b) of the 1993 Act (form of pension credit benefit and its alternatives) is by means of a transaction to which section 19 of the 1993 Act (discharge of liability where guaranteed minimum pensions are secured by insurance policies or annuity contracts) applies.
(2) A transaction referred to in paragraph (1) must satisfy the requirements of regulation 12, 13 or 14 (discharge of liability where pension credit benefit or alternative...
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