PART 1N.I.General

InterpretationN.I.

2.—(1) In these Regulations—

“the 1993 Act” means the Pension Schemes (Northern Ireland) Act 1993;

“the 1995 Order” means the Pensions (Northern Ireland) Order 1995;

“the 1999 Order” means the Welfare Reform and Pensions (Northern Ireland) Order 1999;

“the 2005 Order” means the Pensions (Northern Ireland) Order 2005(1);

[F1“the 2014 Act” means the Public Service Pensions Act (Northern Ireland) 2014(1);]

[F2“the 2021 Act” means the Pension Schemes Act 2021;]

“accrued rights”—

(a)

in relation to an occupational pension scheme, has the meaning given in Article 121(2) of the 1995 Order, and

(b)

in relation to a personal pension scheme, means rights that have accrued under the scheme;

[F3“actuarial valuation”, in relation to a collective money purchase scheme, has the meaning given by section 71(2) of the 2021 Act;

“the available assets of the scheme”, in relation to a collective money purchase scheme, has the meaning given by section 53(2) of the 2021 Act;]

“beneficiary” means a person, other than a member, who is entitled to the payment of benefits under the scheme;

[F4“cash balance benefit” has the meaning given in section 75 of the Pension Schemes Act 2015(3);]

[F5“collective money purchase scheme” means a scheme or a section of a scheme which is a collective money purchase scheme for the purposes of Part 2 of the 2021 Act (collective money purchase benefits: Northern Ireland);]

[F6“drawdown pension” has the meaning given in paragraph 4 of Schedule 28 to the Finance Act 2004(4);]

“electronic communication” has the meaning given in section 4(1) of the Electronic Communications Act (Northern Ireland) 2001(2);

“excluded person” means a member or beneficiary—

(a)

whose present postal address and electronic address are not known to the trustees or managers of the scheme, and

(b)

in respect of whom the trustees or managers of the scheme have sent correspondence to that member’s or beneficiary’s last known—

(i)

postal address and that correspondence has been returned, or

(ii)

electronic address and the trustees or managers of the scheme are satisfied that that correspondence has not been delivered;

[F7“flexible benefit” has the meaning given in section 74 of the Pension Schemes Act 2015;]

F8...

“HMRC” means the Commissioners for Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs;

[F9“ill-health condition” has the meaning given in paragraph 1 of Schedule 28 to the Finance Act 2004;]

“illustration date” means the date specified by the trustees or managers of the scheme as the date by reference to which amounts are calculated for the purpose of giving the information in Part 2 of Schedule 6 [F10and in Schedule 6A];

“lifestyling” means an investment strategy that aims progressively to reduce the potential for significant variation caused by market conditions in the value of the member’s rights;

“member”—

(a)

in relation to an occupational pension scheme, has the meaning given in Article 121(1)(3) of the 1995 Order, and

(b)

in relation to a personal pension scheme, means a member of the scheme;

[F11“multi-annual reduction” has the meaning given by regulation 2 of the Occupational Pension Schemes (Collective Money Purchase Schemes) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2022;]

“prospective member” means a person who, under the terms of that person’s contract of service or the scheme rules or both—

(a)

can choose to become a member of the scheme;

(b)

will be able to choose to become a member of the scheme if that person continues in the same employment for a certain period of time;

(c)

will become a member of the scheme automatically unless that person chooses not to become a member of the scheme, or

(d)

can become a member of the scheme if that person’s employer consents;

[F12“normal minimum pension age” has the meaning given in section 279(1) of the Finance Act 2004;

[F13“pensions guidance” means information or guidance provided by any person in pursuance of the requirements mentioned in section 4 of the Financial Guidance and Claims Act 2018 (specific requirements as to the pensions guidance function);]

“recipient” means the person, organisation or body to whom these Regulations require information or documents to be made available;

“recognised trade union” means an independent trade union (within the meaning given in Article 2(3) of the Employment Rights (Northern Ireland) Order 1996(4)) that is recognised to any extent for the purposes of collective bargaining in relation to members and prospective members of a scheme;

“the Regulator” means the Pensions Regulator(5) established under section 1 of the Pensions Act 2004(6);

“relevant employment” means any employment to which the scheme relates;

“relevant guidance” means the document entitled “AS TM1: Statutory Money Purchase Illustrations” that is adopted or prepared, and from time to time revised, by the Financial Reporting Council Limited(7);

“relevant person” means a—

(a)

member or prospective member of the scheme;

(b)

spouse or civil partner of a member or prospective member;

(c)

beneficiary of the scheme;

(d)

recognised trade union;

“retirement date” has the meaning given in regulation 19(5);

“scheme year” means, in relation to an occupational pension scheme—

(a)

a year specified for the purposes of the scheme in any scheme document or, if there is no such year specified, a period of 12 months commencing on 1st April or on such other date as the trustees choose, or

(b)

a period between 6 and 18 months specified by the trustees in connection with—

(i)

the commencement or termination of the scheme, or

(ii)

a variation of the date on which the period referred to in paragraph (a) is to commence;

[F14“survivor” has the meaning given in section 76(1) of the Pension Schemes Act 2015 (interpretation of Part 4);]

“tax registered scheme” means a scheme that—

(a)

is registered under section 153 of the Finance Act 2004(8) (registration of pension schemes);

(b)

was formerly registered under that section;

(c)

is deemed to be registered under that section by virtue of paragraph 1 of Schedule 36 to that Act (pension schemes etc: transitional provisions and savings), or

(d)

has applied for registration under that section and HMRC have not decided whether to register the scheme;

[F15“transferrable rights” has the meaning given in section 89(11)(b)(6) of the 1993 Act (scope of Chapter 1);]

[F16“unfunded public service defined benefits scheme” has the meaning given in section 91(2C) of the 1993 Act;]

“wholly insured scheme” means a scheme under which all the benefits provided are secured by a policy or policies of insurance or annuity contract or contracts.

[F17(1A) In these Regulations—

[F18(a)a member has an opportunity to transfer flexible benefits where—

(i)the member—

(aa)has transferrable rights in relation to flexible benefits, or

(bb)would have transferrable rights in relation to flexible benefits if the member stopped accruing rights to some or all of the flexible benefits (see sub-paragraph (b)),

and the making of a transfer or transfer payment in respect of the flexible benefits is not prohibited by Article 119(4)(a) of the 2005 Order, or

(ii)the member has an opportunity to transfer accrued rights to flexible benefits out of the scheme under the scheme rules;]

(b)a member stops accruing rights to flexible benefits when there are no longer arrangements in place for the accrual of rights to those flexible benefits for or in respect of the member.]

(2) Subject to paragraph (3), the Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland) 1954(9) shall apply to these Regulations as it applies to an Act of the Assembly.

(3) For the purposes of these Regulations and notwithstanding section 39(2) of the Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland) 1954, where a period of time is expressed to begin on, or to be reckoned from, a particular day, that day shall be included in the period.]

Textual Amendments

Commencement Information

I1Reg. 2 in operation at 6.4.2014, see reg. 1(1)

(2)

2001 c. 9 (N.I.); the definition of “electronic communication” in section 4(1) was amended by paragraph 170 of Schedule 17 to the Communications Act 2003 (c. 21)

(3)

The definition of “member” was amended by paragraph 50(2) of Schedule 9 to the Welfare Reform and Pensions (Northern Ireland) Order 1999

(5)

The Pensions Regulator can be contacted at Napier House, Trafalgar Place, Brighton BN1 4DW or at www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk

(7)

The Financial Reporting Council can be contacted at 5th Floor, Aldwych House, 71-91 Aldwych, London WC2B 4HN and at www.frc.org.uk

(8)

2004 c. 12; section 153 was amended by paragraphs 2 and 3 of Schedule 10 to the Finance Act 2005 (c. 7)