Information on amendments to the Occupational Pension Schemes (Preservation of Benefits) Regulations, 2022 (the Preservation Regulations)
27 October 2023: Today the Pensions Authority publishes information for trustees on the amendments provided for under the Occupational Pension Schemes (Preservation of Benefits) (Amendment) Regulations, 2023 (S.I. No. 499 of 2023) which came into force on 17 October 2023. These regulations amend certain provisions of the Preservation Regulations. The main changes are outlined below.
Increase in the threshold for transfers without member consent
Section 35 of the Pensions Act gives trustees of occupational pension schemes the power, under certain conditions, to make a transfer payment in respect of a member, in lieu of providing a preserved benefit from the scheme, without the consent of the member, where the amount available for transfer is below a certain threshold. That threshold has been increased to €20,000 (previously €10,000).
Statutory member notifications for transfers without member consent
The Preservation Regulations require trustees to notify members in advance of any transfer payment made in accordance with section 35 of the Pensions Act. The Preservation Regulations are amended to allow for those notifications to be made by way of any electronic method.
Other changes
Regulation 6(b) of the Preservation Regulations is amended to reflect changes to the referencing of the relevant maternity protection legislation in the context of certain temporary leave of members (paid maternity leave) which must be treated as reckonable service. Various other definitions are also updated or amended.
Lastly, the list of schemes which are exempt from the provisions of Part III of the Pensions Act is revised to include the Single Public Service Pension Scheme and a small number of other schemes, and to remove certain schemes.
For further information, contact:
Technical Unit
The Pensions Authority
Tel: (01) 613 1900
News by email alert service
You can sign up for free on the Authority’s website to receive an email alert anytime the Authority publishes information on its website.