By Adedapo Adesanya
The National Pension Commission (PenCom) has promised to punish employers remitting the pension contributions of their employees with incomplete documentation, giving them a deadline of December 31, 2023, to fix the issues.
In a press release seen by Business Post, the pensions regulator said it observed that some employers were remitting without following the set procedures, adding that Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs) have been unable to credit the RSAs of the affected employees.
“Please note that the commission shall take appropriate regulatory actions against employers who fail to comply with this directive by December 31, 2023, in line with the provisions of the PRA 2014,” it said.
The Pension Reform Act 2014 (PRA 2014) mandates employers with three or more employees to remit pension contributions into the Retirement Savings Accounts (RSAs) of their employees with Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs).
The PRA 2014 further mandates employers to remit the pension contributions of their employees who are yet to open RSAS into nominal RSAs with any PFA chosen at the employers’ discretion.
The commission noted that the list of the affected employers and employees can be viewed on the websites of PenCom and PFAs.
“All employers and employees on the aforementioned list are required to provide the PFAs with the requisite information to facilitate the crediting of pension contributions into the employees’ RSAS,” the statement said.
“RSA holders and the general public are assured of PenCom’s commitment to effectively regulating and supervising the pension industry, to ensure that retirement benefits are paid as and when due,” it added.