Consumer > Employees > Making contributions
Making contributions
This couldn't be easier. You don't need to worry about setting up direct debits or sending cheques.
Your contributions are taken directly from your salary and paid by your employer to Scottish Life.
Deciding how much to save
Generally speaking, the more you save, the more you can expect to get back. Although, the value of your investment can go down as well as up an you may not get back the value of the original investment.
You may choose to save as much as you can afford. In fact, you can save up to 100% of your earnings into pension plans in a tax year if you want to. This is the total amount you can pay into this plan and any other pension plans you have in a tax year.
Your employer will normally help you by making contributions into your plan. Often, the amount they pay is based on the amount you pay. If this applies you should pay as much as you can to get the maximum amount from your employer.
There is an upper limit on the amount that you can save into pensions in a tax year. This is known as the annual allowance - if you exceed it you'll incur a 40% tax charge on the excess.
Boost your pension savings with single contributions
Making single contributions can really help to boost your retirement savings.
Luckily, you can make single contributions at any time. So if you receive a bonus from work or have some spare cash, you can pay it into your plan so long as you don't exceed the annual allowance. These contributions can be made through your employer's payroll or by cheque, and they benefit from tax relief in the same way as your regular contributions.
Transfer other pension plans
If you have retirement savings built up in other pension plans you can transfer them into this plan. As your contributions to the previous arrangement have already received tax relief, the transfer payment won't receive any more. Transfers are complicated, so if you're thinking of making one you must talk to a financial adviser to make sure it would be in your best interests.
Last update: 17 April 2012
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