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A pension scheme is how you can build up tax efficient retirement savings while you’re working, to help you live the life you want in retirement. Membership also gives you, and eligable dependants financial protection while you're still working.

You can find out more information about the defined benefits sections of the Siemens Benefits Scheme on My Pension. If you're a member of the defined contribution section you can read about the Siemens Pension Saving Plan on the My Benefits Platform.

The State Pension starts between 65 and 68 depending on your age. Find out when your State Pension will start.

State Pensions changed in 2016, visit the GOV.UK website to find out more.

Some people’s State pensions will be calculated by comparing the old and new basis. If you would like to know how much you are likely to get you can get a forecast.

The State Pension will increase in payment. You can delay taking your State Pension which could increase the payments you get when you decide to claim it. You cannot take your State Pension early.

DB schemes pay out a secure income life that increases each year. The amount you get depends on your salary and how long you were a member of the scheme.

DC schemes do not promise a secure income. Instead you and your employer pay into a pension pot and this is invested. From age 55 you can access your pension pot or exchange it for a secure income.

If you are no longer working for Siemens or you are about to retire, you may want to transfer out of your Siemens pension scheme to another pension scheme of your choice. This means you will be giving up your Siemens scheme benefits.

You may wish to seek financial advice to make sure a transfer is in your best interests.

If you’re thinking about transferring your pension to another scheme, a recent change in the law could help protect you from becoming the victim of a pension scam. Click here for more information.

If you’d like to ask about transferring your benefits you can get in touch with Trafalgar House through www2.myworkpension.co.uk

Find out more by checking your last payslip to see which Scheme you are in together with contact details.

Information about all the Plans under the Siemens Benefits Scheme can be found here.

Check your pension paperwork (leaver statements, benefit statements) to obtain Scheme and contact details.

Use the pension tracing service to help track the scheme's current contact details.

You can nominate the people who you'd like to recieve your benefits in the event of your death. All you need to do is log in to My Work Pension and you can find and complete the online form under the Your Account menu.

The Scheme Trust Deed and Rules are available on My Work Pension

You can find the information under the Resources menu on the Scheme Documents page.

This statement explains how we collect, use, share and store your personal data.

You can read it here.

The Scheme documents can be found below:

• Download Statement of Investment Principles
• Implementation Statement (DB)
• Taskforce on climate-related financial disclosures (TCFD) statement
• The Chair's Statement
• Implementation Statement (DC)

From 1 October 2023 defined contribution (DC) benefits were moved to the Siemens Pension Saving Plan with Standard Life.

For details of your specific plan visit the defined benefit section page here and select your plan and then death benefits.

Scammers can be articulate and financially knowledgeable, with credible websites, testimonials, and materials that are hard to distinguish from the real thing. A pension scam is when someone tries to con you out of your pension money. Scammers design attractive offers to persuade you to transfer your pension pot to them or to release funds from it.

You can find more information on the Money Helper website by clicking here

Pension rights are normally taken into account as part of a couple’s assets. There are a number of options available to the court in dealing with pension rights. We will comply with any instructions from the court. If you need more divorce related pension information, please contact the Member Services Team.

The Trustees’ role is to run the whole of the Siemens Benefits Scheme, making decisions on behalf of members, ensuring that the Plan is operated in accordance with the rules and within the law.

You can find out more about the Trustees here.

If your complaint cannot be resolved by the Member Services Team, there is a two-stage formal process for resolving disputes:

1. Write to the Secretary to the Trustees at Pension Services, PO Box 131, Blyth, NE24 9FB. You will receive a response within a month.
2. If you are not satisfied with the Secretary’s decision, you can write to the Trustees at the above address. You must write within six months of the Secretary’s decision. Your complaint will be considered at a board meeting and these are held quarterly. You will receive a letter following the meeting explaining the outcome. So, when you can expect a response depends on when your complaint is received.

If you are not satisfied by the result of the internal procedure you can contact The Pensions Ombudsman.

These are contributions you choose to make into the pension Plan. They stand for Employee Directed Contributions and Additional Voluntary Contributions.

Thinking of making a contribution above 10%?

If you would like to pay more than 10% then you can:

Contribute up to 35% of your pensionable salary by making Employee Directed Contributions (EDCs), you can choose to do this on My Benefits.

You can also make regular or lump sum contributions at any time up to your full monthly earnings (less National Insurance and any other deductions). These are known as Additional Voluntary Contributions (AVCs). You can make or change Additional Voluntary Contributions through My Benefits.

Visit the My Benefits website for further details.

The Plan is registered with HM Revenue & Customs, so the advantages shown above apply under current regulations. In return for these tax concessions, HM Revenue & Customs sets rules that apply to pension benefits and contributions. The Annual Plan report can be supplied to you on request.

There’s a limit on how much money you can build up, tax-free, as a total across all your pension arrangements in any one tax year. This is known as the ‘annual allowance’. You can find the current annual allowance amount on the government website.

However:

• you may be able to use previous, unused annual allowance to get tax relief on a greater amount than the annual allowance in a single tax year. You may want to consider speaking to a financial adviser if this applies to you.
• there are certain situations where your annual allowance may be less than the regular annual allowance (please see below).

Could a lower annual allowance apply to me?

There are two situations in which your annual allowance may be reduced:

1. If you have flexibly accessed your pension savings, you may be subject to the ‘money purchase annual allowance’ which reduces your annual allowance. The MoneyHelper website has more information about the money purchase annual allowance, including its current level.
2. If you’re a high earner, you may be subject to something called the ‘tapered annual allowance’. Generally speaking, the more you earn, the less your annual allowance will be. For this to apply to you, and broadly speaking, you’d need to have and income of over £200,000. The MoneyHelper website includes an explanation of how the tapered annual allowance is calculated, and when it applies. However, it is a complicated area. Therefore, if you think this allowance may apply to you, we recommend you speak to a financial adviser.

Most people will be able to take 25% of the value of their pension free of tax. However, the government limits the total tax-free amount you can take to £268,275. This is known as the 'lump sum allowance'. For this limit to apply to you, the total value of all your pension savings would, broadly, need be more than £1.073 million.

There is also the 'lump sum and death benefit allowance'. This is a total tax-free limit for all lump sum benefits paid from all your pension arrangements. This allowance is currently set at £1.073 million. The lump sum and death benefit allowance includes:

1. Retirement lump sums (please see above)
2. Lump sums payable if you were to fall into serious ill-health
3. Lump sums payable to your to your beneficiaries if you were to die

In other words, when you come to take your pension benefits from any pension, the amount of tax-free cash you take will reduce the tax-free allowance:

• You'd be able to take if you became seriously ill, or
• What your dependents would be able take if you were to die

Contact the HMRC for further information quoting reference 073/P361L at Bradford Beckside. Taxpayer Service Office, Centenary Court, No 1 St Blaise Way, Bradford, West Yorkshire, BD1 4YL Phone 0300 200 3300.

Click here to go to the Government website.

Pension increases are pro-rated for part-year retirements. The increases applied depend on when the benefits were accrued and under which pension plan. You will receive a letter and payslip annually informing you of your increase.

Click here to see all the Plans under the Siemens Benefits Scheme.