All workers will fall into one of three categories:
- eligible jobholders
- entitled workers
- non-eligible jobholders
A table summarising the different categories of worker for ‘automatic enrolment’ purposes is set out below.
| Earnings | Age (Inclusive) 16 – 21 | Age (Inclusive) 22 – State Pension Age | Age (Inclusive) State Pension Age – 75 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under lower earnings threshold (£6,240*) | Entitled worker (can join a qualifying pension scheme) | Entitled worker (can join a qualifying pension scheme) | Entitled worker (can join a qualifying pension scheme) |
| Between £6,240 and £10,000* | Non-eligible jobholder (can opt into the automatic enrolment scheme) | Non-eligible jobholder (can opt into the automatic enrolment scheme) | Non-eligible jobholder (can opt into the automatic enrolment scheme) |
| Over earnings trigger for automatic enrolment (£10,000*) | Non-eligible jobholder (can opt into the automatic enrolment scheme) | Eligible jobholder (must be automatically enrolled) | Non-eligible jobholder (can opt into the automatic enrolment scheme) |
*2024/25 figures
Eligible jobholder
This is a worker
- who is working or ordinarily works in Northern Ireland under the worker’s contract, and
- who is aged at least 22 and under State Pension Age, and
- to whom earnings of more than the annualised equivalent of £10,000 are payable by the employer in the relevant pay reference period. It should be noted that if a worker has genuinely separate contracts then the earnings from each should be treated separately (not aggregated) when determining whether, in relation to a contract, the worker is an entitled worker, a non-eligible jobholder or an eligible jobholder. Information and examples on how to determine earnings in a pay reference period can be found in Detailed Guidance no. 3 on The Pensions Regulator’s website
Entitled worker
This is a worker –
- who is working or ordinarily works in Northern Ireland under the worker’s contract, and
- who is aged at least 16 and is under age 75, and
- to whom earnings of less than the annualised equivalent of £6,240 are payable by the employer in the relevant pay reference period. It should be noted that if a worker has separate contracts then the earnings from each should be treated separately (not aggregated) when determining whether, in relation to a contract, the worker is an entitled worker, a non- eligible jobholder or an eligible jobholder. Information and examples on how to determine earnings in a pay reference period can be found in Detailed Guidance no. 3 on The Pensions Regulator’s website
Non-eligible jobholder
This is a worker –
- who is working or ordinarily works in Northern Ireland under the worker’s contract, and
- who is aged at least 16 and is under age 75 and to whom annualised equivalent earnings of £6,240 or more but less than or equal to £10,000 are payable by the employer in the relevant pay reference period, or
- who is aged at least 16 and under age 22, or has attained State Pension Age and is under age 75, and to whom annualised equivalent earnings of more than £10,000 are payable by the employer in the relevant pay reference period. It should be noted that if a worker has separate contracts then the earnings from each should be treated separately (not aggregated) when determining whether, in relation to a contract, the worker is an entitled worker, a non-eligible jobholder or an eligible jobholder. Information and examples on how to determine earnings in a pay reference period can be found in Detailed Guidance no. 3 on The Pensions Regulator’s website
Jobholder
This is a term that covers both eligible jobholders and non-eligible jobholders.
Exemptions
From 6 August 2015 there are four new exemptions to the employer duty to automatically enrol eligible members.
- Workers in notice periods within six weeks of their automatic enrolment or re-enrolment date
- Former members who have opted out in the last 12 months
- Former members who opted out more than 12 months before the automatic enrolment date cannot be automatically enrolled. Instead, such individuals should be enrolled on the re-enrolment date
- Individuals with tax protection against the lifetime allowance tax charge (primary protection, enhanced protection, fixed protection 2012, fixed protection 2014, individual protection 2014, and from 6 March 2017; fixed protection 2016 or individual protection 2016). N.B. Employers may wish to ask staff/new joiners if they have any of these protections.