A short guide to words and terms commonly used in pensions.
Active member
An employee who is currently paying into and building up benefits in their employer's pension scheme.
Actuary
Professional advisers who calculate financial risks, the statistical likelihood of these risks occurring and the impact they may have. The actuary carries out regular valuations of the Scheme to see how it’s performing and whether there is enough money being paid in (assets) to cover the cost of paying pensions out (liabilities).
Additional Voluntary Contributions (AVCs)
AVCs are contributions you make in addition to your regular pension contributions. AVCs may be paid into the same or a separate arrangement to your regular pension contributions, but are usually still tax-free, subject to certain limits.
Annual Allowance (AA)
This is the maximum amount you can save into all of your pension arrangements combined each tax year before tax is charged on any excess. The Annual Allowance is currently £60,000, but could be subject to change in future.
However, a lower ‘Tapered Annual Allowance’ applies to high-earning pension savers and may affect those with a taxable income of more than £200,000.
A lower allowance may also apply if you’ve taken money out of your pension pot. This is known as the ‘Money Purchase Annual Allowance’.
You can find more information on the current Annual Allowance limits at www.gov.uk/tax-on-your-private-pension/annual-allowance
Annuity
A series of payments made at regular intervals for an agreed period (often for the life of the person purchasing the annuity). Pension scheme members often choose to purchase an annuity by means of an insurance policy once they retire, although they’re no longer obliged to.
Beneficiary
Someone who will receive benefits from the Scheme following your death. Your beneficiaries are likely to include a partner or children (if any). However, you can name any people or organisations to receive a lump sum payment if you die before claiming your pension (or within five years of taking it) by completing an Expression of Wish form.
Benefits
Any payments made on behalf of your pension scheme, including tax-free lump sums, pension payments and death benefits.
Benefit statement
A statement or estimate showing a member’s expected benefits from their pension scheme.
Buy-in
A buy-in is when a pension scheme purchases an insurance policy, which guarantees the insurer will provide the money needed to pay pensions for its members.
Civil partner
A person who has entered into a civil partnership with his or her same-sex partner.
Contributions
The money you pay into your pension scheme or any Additional Voluntary Contribution (AVC) arrangements.
Deferred member
A person who is no longer paying into their employer's pension scheme, but who still has benefits in it that they haven’t yet taken payment of.
Defined Benefit (DB) schemes
In DB schemes, the amount of income a member receives when they retire depends on the rules of the scheme and will be percentage of their salary multiplied by the number of years of service that counts towards their pension. The most common DB schemes are Final Salary Schemes.
Defined Contribution (DC) schemes
In DC schemes, the amount of contributions paid by the member and employer is set, but the amount of income received on retirement is not and depends on investment market performance. Also known as ‘money purchase’ schemes.
Dependant
Someone who relies to some extent on your income. Your partner and children are usually considered dependants, but you may have others.
Early retirement
Taking the benefits from your pension scheme before you reach your normal retirement age.
Ill-health retirement
When a pension scheme member retires for medical reasons before reaching the Scheme's normal retirement date.
Lifetime Allowance (LTA)
The Lifetime Allowance was abolished from 6 April 2024 and new Lump Sum Allowances were introduced. You can read more about each of these elsewhere in the glossary.
Historically, the LTA was the maximum amount you could build up in all of your registered pension savings throughout your working life before you had to pay additional tax.
The LTA for the tax year 6 April 2022 to 5 April 2023 was £1,073,100.
Lump sum
A cash payment available to pension scheme members, usually at retirement. It is currently tax-free.
Lump Sum Allowance (LSA)
The LSA is a cap on the amount of tax-free lump sum you can receive from all your registered pension arrangements. The standard LSA is £268,275. If you have an LTA protection, you may have a higher allowance than set out above.
If the only pension arrangement you are a member of is the Amey OS Pension Scheme, you only need to consider whether the total tax-free lump sum you want to take from the Scheme is more than your available LSA. If you have previously taken pension benefits from either the Amey OS Pension Scheme or another scheme, it will be taken into account and will reduce the available LSA for future retirements.
Depending on the rules of the Scheme you may be able to take a lump sum in excess of the available LSA. This excess amount is called a Pension Commencement Excess Lump Sum (PCELS) and is liable for tax at your marginal rate. Alternatively, if the Scheme rules allow, the excess may be converted to additional annual pension.
Lump Sum and Death Benefits Allowance (LSDBA)
This is the cap on the tax-free lump sum that can be paid to, or in respect of, a member of a registered pension scheme. If the value of lump sum death benefits means that the LSDBA will be exceeded, the excess may be taxed at the marginal rate of income tax of the person receiving it.
The standard LSDBA is £1,073,100. If you have an LTA protection, you may have a higher allowance than set out above.
Member
A person who, having joined a pension scheme, has built up benefits under that scheme.
Money purchase pension
Another term for defined contribution schemes.
National Insurance contributions
Money taken from your pay by the government, which is used to fund the State Pension and other State benefits.
Normal pension age (NPA)
The earliest age at which a member can usually receive full pension benefits.
Normal retirement age (NRA)
The age at which employees in a certain role usually retire.
Overseas Transfer Allowance (OTA)
This only applies to transfers out to a Qualifying Recognised Overseas Transfer Scheme. The OTA limit will be £1,073,100, unless a valid LTA protection is held. If the transfer value exceeds the OTA, there will be an overseas transfer charge (OTC) of 25%.
Pension
A savings plan that is designed to be held until retirement age and looked after by Trustees.
Pension benefits
A general term for monies paid from a pension scheme.
Pension input period (PIP)
A period of time, aligned to the tax year, over which a member's contributions to (or benefits built up in) a pension are measured against the Annual Allowance.
Pension scheme administrator
The person or company that runs a pension scheme and carries out certain legal requirements, for example paying certain tax charges to HMRC.
Pensionable earnings
The part of your earnings which qualify for the calculation of pension benefits and define the amount of contributions you pay.
Personal pension
A registered pension scheme that is independent of your employer.
Retirement
The period that occurs after an individual has stopped working in paid employment and takes their pension benefits. May it be long and happy!
State Pension
The pension paid to UK citizens by the Government when they reach State Pension age.
State Pension age (SPA)
The age you start to receive your State Pension benefits. You can work out your State Pension age using the GOV.uk calculator.
Summary Funding Statement
A report that tells you the financial position of a scheme at the time of its actuarial valuation or annual funding update. It also provides the main reasons for any changes in funding position and, if the scheme is in deficit, it shows the agreed recovery plan.
Trustee
An individual or group responsible for governing a pension scheme.
Valuation
An assessment of a scheme’s performance over a given time frame (every three years for defined benefit schemes) to compare funds being paid in against funds being paid out.