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Automatic enrolment requires employers to enrol all workers, who work in the UK and who satisfy specific age and earnings criteria into a qualifying workplace pension, and to pay at least the minimum level of contributions.
Automatic enrolment threshold
The automatic enrolment earnings trigger determines who is eligible to be automatically enrolled into a workplace pension by their employer, in terms of how much they earn.
The earnings threshold to be auto-enrolled into a workplace pension has been frozen at £10,000 for 2021/2022.
| 2020/2021 | 2021/2022 | |
| Automatic enrolment threshold | £10,000 | £10,000 |
Qualifying earnings band
‘Qualifying earnings’ are the minimum earnings that pension contributions are usually based on, if you contribute to a workplace pension:
They include:
- salary
- wages
- overtime
- bonuses and commission
- statutory sick pay
- any statutory pay received during paternity, maternity, adoption or any other kind of family leave.
Some employers use a different earnings basis though – usually either pensionable earnings or total earnings.
The following changes will be made to the qualifying earnings band for 2021/2022:
| 2020/2021 | 2021/2022 | |
| Lower limit | £6,240 | £6,240 |
| Upper limit | £50,000 | £50,270 |
The upper limit has been increased in line with the National Insurance Upper Earnings Limit.
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