Simplification of pension contribution tax relief

KEY POINTS

• Pensions simplification in 2006 heralded continuing changes to tax relief for pension contributions.
• Importance of determining the nature of the payments.
• Single premiums might be included in future PAYE codes.
• Taxpayers with lifetime allowance protection should avoid accidental payment of further pension premiums.
• Non-taxpaying employees may be missing out on basic rate tax relief.

It should be a simple enough task to claim tax relief for pension contributions. We can start by asking ourselves what we need from the client to complete the relevant sections of their tax return form SA100 2018. There was a time when this was the amount that had been paid gross to a retirement annuity contract or net of basic rate tax to a personal pension contract. The amount paid would be checked against...