One of the benefits of your pension scheme is that your contributions are flexible. You can contribute as much as you like into your pension, although the total amount of tax relief you get on your pension savings is limited. Your pension contributions are taken from your salary every month. So once you've decided how much you want to pay in, it all happens automatically.
If you stop or reduce your contributions, it'll affect how much money you eventually have and you'll still pay charges.
Your employer may contribute to your pension too. It's easy to forget just how much of a difference your employer contributions can make. Some employers will even pay more into your pension the more you pay. So by increasing your contributions, you could be increasing your pension pot because your employer could also contribute more. If you stop your contributions, remember that any employer contributions may also change.
As all the contributions you and your employer make are invested in your choice of fund(s), the value of your investment can go down as well as up and you may get back less than you put in.
Before increasing or changing your pension contributions, please read your current Key Features document and your Fund Guide which are available online or from your employer/scheme administrator. They have important information about the risks, benefits, costs and charges of the product and funds to help you make a decision.
Auto-enrolment is a UK Government initiative aimed at helping more people save for the future through a workplace pension.
During your working life, it's important to consider your retirement and the ability to enjoy life when you reach retirement. Saving into your workplace pension could help you do just that.
Life isn't always as simple as we'd like it to be. Some things take us by surprise and those surprises can cost money. Your circumstances will change over time and so may the lifestyle you expect to have when you retire.
The money you save into your pension comes from your salary. There are different ways to make your contributions and they impact the tax savings you make.