SSAS fee schedule

We can set up small self-administered pension schemes for UK-based trading companies where all the members act as trustees along with Barnett Waddingham Trustees Limited.

The Scheme Establishment fee includes:

• Producing a Trust Deed to establish the scheme
• Producing membership documentation for up to eleven members
• Setting up a trustee bank account with our preferred panel bank (see Note 1)
• Registering the scheme with HM Revenue & Customs
• Registering the scheme with the Information Commissioner’s Office
• Registering the scheme with The Pensions Regulator (if necessary)

Please note that we will only set up a new scheme where we are appointed to act as a professional trustee.

An initial fee of £750 plus VAT is payable on production of the Scheme Establishment documentation and an additional £500 plus VAT is payable once the scheme has been registered with HM Revenue & Customs and the bank account has been set up.

Our fee for Scheme Establishment is £1,250 plus VAT.

Trustees are responsible for administering the scheme and its benefits although will usually delegate this to a pension professional. We charge a fixed fee for Annual Administration Services which can include the items shown below, where required.

• Calculating an apportionment of assets at the date of the financial statements (see Note 2)
• Maintaining scheme records on our administration system and providing an annual summary
• Access to a named client manager accountable for your pension scheme
• Submitting HM Revenue & Customs Registered Pension Scheme Return
• Submitting The Pensions Regulator triennial Scheme Return
• Liaising with the scheme accountant to aid production of scheme accounts
• Submitting HM Revenue & Customs Event Report and Accounting For Tax Return
• Providing member statements as required by HM Revenue & Customs
• Handling renewal process for The Pensions Regulator and the Information Commissioner’s Office

Please note that the Annual Administration Services fee does not include levy payments that may be due to The Pensions Regulator and the Information Commissioner’s Office.

Our Annual Administration Services fee is £1,500 plus VAT or £1,750 plus VAT where we act as sole Scheme Administrator (see Note 3). An additional annual charge of £170 plus VAT applies where trustees are using a non-panel current bank account (See Note 4). Our Annual Administration Services fee accrues monthly and is invoiced six-monthly in arrears.

Our fixed Annual Administration fee is the same amount for all our clients. We do not charge annual ‘per member’ or ‘per investment’ supplements simply for a scheme having more than one member or an investment other than cash at bank.

The Annual Administration Services fee covers essential work that we think is best done by the pension provider. Other work will be required from time to time. Due to the variable nature of additional work requested, we charge on a time-cost basis (i.e. the work is invoiced in arrears based on the time spent and the charge out rate of the people involved). In some instances, though, where the work is uniform, we charge on a fixed fee basis. Work charged on a fixed-fee basis is shown below. Fees charged “per tax year” are payable if the service occurs for any part of the tax year.

Additional work that we conduct that is not covered by the Scheme Establishment, Annual Administration Services or Supplementary Fixed fees is conducted on a time-cost basis. We can provide estimates in advance on request and will only charge time-cost fees for work that has been requested or we are required to conduct to discharge our duties to the trustees and the relevant authorities.

Examples of work conducted on a time-cost basis are shown below.

• Attendance at meetings (travel time charged at half time cost)
• Calculating an apportionment of assets where assets are earmarked between members (see Note 3)
• Work relating to property transactions including purchase, sale, borrowing and leasing
• Work relating to maturing bank deposits
• Liaising with third parties regarding a change in the trustees’ primary bank account
• Facilitating lending to sponsoring employers and others
• Organising benefit drawdown for members
• Distribution of death benefits
• Processing transfers to or from other pension arrangements
• Dealing with pension sharing on divorce
• Winding-up including consultancy, fund apportionment, investment and bank account administration
• Consultancy on any issues
• Guidance relating to the feasibility of proposed investments

The current hourly rates vary in line with experience and seniority. The range of rates as of 1 June 2023 are set out below - rates applicable to particular staff can be confirmed on request.

1. If a trustee bank account is required with a specific bank that is not on our panel, we reserve the right to charge an additional fee based on the additional work required in dealing with that bank
2. There is more work required to calculate the apportionment of scheme assets where assets are earmarked between members. We therefore charge a time-cost fee for that work.
3. Higher annual fee for acting as sole Scheme Administrator: there must be at least one designated Scheme Administrator who is accountable to HM Revenue & Customs for the pension scheme which could be one or more of the trustees and sponsoring employers. Where we are appointed as professional trustee, we can act as Scheme Administrator. Instead of charging for providing a trustee service, we charge a higher annual fee if, for any part of a tax year, we act as sole Scheme Administrator. More information on the role of a Scheme Administrator can be found in our online guide. www.barnett-waddingham.co.uk/comment-insight/briefings/the-role-of-a-scheme-administrator
4. Additional annual fee for using a non-panel bank current account: a supplement is added because administration becomes more time-consuming if we are not provided with a daily data feed of bank transactions and do not have a dedicated relationship manager for the bank.
5. The fixed fee for a new member or trustee includes provision of a deed of appointment, a membership invitation letter, a blank expression of wishes/list of dependants forms and notifying the regulatory authorities. Any additional tasks such as transfer-in of other benefits, updating bank mandates and investments is variable and charged on a time-cost basis. We will provide a fee estimate based on the work we are instructed to complete,
6. We charge a fixed fee for reconciled unaudited financial statements based on the assets owned during the accounting period and can provide a fee estimate on request. The fee is on a time-cost basis if scheme assets are particularly complex.
7. We do not charge an additional retainer fee when instructed to provide a professional trustee to the scheme, though where we act as trustee we will naturally be more involved in scheme transactions and so time-cost charges for similar pieces of work will be higher where we act as trustee.
8. Fees are expected to increase each year on 1 June, though may be reviewed at any time in line with our terms of business. All fees are subject to VAT and settlement is required within 30 days.
9. The Annual Administration Services fee is invoiced six monthly in arrears. We reserve the right to invoice more frequently if there has been a significant amount of work undertaken on a scheme.
10. The Annual Administration Services fee assumes the scheme qualifies for exemptions from the administration requirements of the Pensions Acts. There will be additional time-cost fees if the scheme does not qualify for the exemptions.
11. If a transaction or investment fails to complete, time will have been incurred for the work completed up to the date the transaction is abandoned. We will charge for our accrued time for abandoned items of work.
12. Some schemes reach a level of size, complication or the trustees have particular administration requirements, which results in time costs which significantly exceed the fees quoted in this schedule. If your scheme falls into that category, your client manager will write to you to confirm how the fees for your scheme will be assessed.