Aspects of scheme participation

Participation in an occupational pension scheme requires sponsoring employers and their advisers to have a detailed working knowledge of a wide range of aspects and principles of pensions law.

In particular, employers and their advisers need to be aware of:

•
the duty of employers that participate in a defined benefit occupational pension scheme to notify certain employer-related events to the Pensions Regulator
•
issues that arise when admitting a new employer to participation in the scheme
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issues that arise when substituting another employer in place of the principal employer of the scheme
•
issues that arise if the employer changes into a Limited Liability Partnership

Changing to a Limited Liability Partnership (LLP)—pension issues

The establishment of LLPs in place of existing business vehicles has proven increasingly popular over recent years, largely due to their flexibility and the protection they offer to members. A number of pensions issues can arise when an employer participating in a pension scheme changes its business vehicle to an LLP, depending on the nature of the group’s pension arrangements and the actual change contemplated. These include:

•
determining whether the employees' employments

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