National statistics

Quality report: Private pension statistics

Updated 27 September 2023

1. Contact

• Organisation unit - Knowledge, Analysis and Intelligence (KAI)

• Name – P Nixon, K O’Mara and B Badaru

• Email – personaltax.statistics@hmrc.gov.uk

For press queries, please contact HMRC Press Office: newsdesk@hmrc.gov.uk

2. Statistical presentation

2.1 Data description

This quality report relates to the Private pension statistics, a National Statistics publication, and its purpose is to provide users with information about the quality of the outputs as set out by the Code of Practice for Statistics for Official Statistics. Further information on quality reports for HMRC publications can be found on the Quality Reports Collection page.

The publication is released annually and provides information on the following:

• individual contributions to personal pensions

• estimated cost of pension tax and national insurance contribution relief

• annual allowance charges

• lifetime allowance charges

• taxable flexible payments from pensions

Please see section 2.4 for further details on the units used in the publication. More information on the policy background and descriptions of the tables contained in the publication can be found in the Background and Methodology.

2.2 Classification system

Breakdowns of data are based on the information available in the administrative returns and survey information used to compile the statistics.

Individual level data is aggregated by National Insurance number, where available.

2.3 Sector coverage

These statistics cover registered private pension schemes, which include both personal and occupational schemes.

2.4 Statistical unit

The units in the statistics are:

• the number of members making contributions to personal pensions

• the value of contributions to personal pensions made by members

• the number of individuals making contributions to personal pensions who are self-employed

• the value of contributions to personal pensions made by individuals who are self-employed

• the number of reported LTA charges

• the value of reported LTA charges

• the number of individuals reporting AA breaches

• the value of reported AA breaches

• the number of reported AA charges

• the value of reported AA charges

• the estimated value of pension Income Tax and National Insurance Contribution relief

• the number of taxable flexible payments reported

• the value of taxable flexible payments reported

• the number of individuals receiving taxable flexible payments

2.5 Statistical population

All members making contributions to, or accessing, private pensions in the United Kingdom (UK).

2.6 Reference area

This analysis is presented for a single region – the UK.

2.7 Time coverage

The statistics on value and members of personal pensions, Table 2, cover the time period from 2013 to 2014, to the latest tax year for which a complete set of administrative returns from pension scheme providers is available.

The statistics on the estimated cost of pension Income Tax and National Insurance Contribution relief, Table 6, cover tax years 2019 to 2020 to the latest tax year for which a complete set of administrative returns and survey data is available or can be reasonably estimated using projections.

The statistics on distributional breakdowns of the estimated cost of pension Income Tax and national insurance contribution relief, Tables 6.1 and 6.2, cover the latest tax year for which a complete set of administrative returns and survey data is available or can be reasonably estimated using projections.

The statistics on AA and LTA charges, Tables 7 and 8, cover tax year 2006 to 2007 until the until the latest tax year for which complete sets of administrative returns from pension scheme providers and individuals are available.

The statistics on taxable flexible payments from pensions, Table 9, cover tax year 2015 to 2016 until the latest financial quarter for which reported information on taxable flexible payments from pensions is available.

3. Statistical processing

3.1 Source data

The published pension tables draw on information from the following returns that pension providers, individuals and employers submit to HMRC.

APSS106 - Registered Pension Schemes Relief at Source Annual claim return: this form provides number of members and individual contributions for each registered relief at source pension scheme provider.

APSS107 - Registered Pension Schemes Annual statistical return: this form provides numbers of members and individual contributions by employer and non-employer sponsored schemes for each registered pension provider. Providers are no longer required to complete this return as explained in the pension scheme newsletter.

RPSCOM100(Z) - Annual Return of Information; this return provides HMRC with details of personal pension accounts in electronic format providing details on individual contributions made in the tax year. Personal details of each account holder are also provided.

SA101 is a supplementary page to the main SA100 Self Assessment Tax return. This provides HMRC with details of individuals exceeding their annual allowance.

Accounting for Tax Return (AFT) is used by scheme administrators of registered pension schemes to report and pay tax charges relating to the annual allowance and lifetime allowance.

Real Time Information (RTI) is how HMRC receive information about tax and other deductions under the PAYE system submitted by the employer every time an employee is paid. This provides information on employees pay and individual contributions to occupational pensions.

Survey of Personal Incomes (SPI) is based on information held by HMRC on individuals who could be liable to UK Income Tax. It is carried out annually by HMRC and covers income assessable to tax for each tax year.

In addition, this publication uses the following data sources provided by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

ASHE. - The Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings is produced annually by the ONS and provides information on the pay, individual contributions and employer contributions of employees with occupational pensions.

FSPS. - The Financial Survey of Pension Schemes is a quarterly survey produced by the ONS that gathers information about income and expenditure, transactions, assets and liabilities of UK-funded occupational pension schemes.

WAS - The Wealth and Assets Survey is a biennial survey produced by the ONS that provides information on pension wealth.

3.2 Data collection

The deadline for scheme administrators to submit APSS106 forms to HMRC is 5 October following the end of the relevant tax year.

The submission deadline for RPSCOM100(Z) form is 5 July following the relevant tax year.

The publication makes use of data sources collected by other teams in HMRC, including:

• Self Assessment forms completed by members of registered pension schemes on an annual basis, the submission deadline is 31 January following the relevant tax year.

• Accounting for Tax (AFT) returns which pension scheme providers submit quarterly, the deadline for these returns depends on the type of charge reported

• Real Time Information (RTI) which pension scheme providers submit per pay period.

• The Survey of Personal Incomes (SPI) statistics publication, which is derived from an annual sample survey carried out by HMRC that covers income assessable to Income Tax for each tax year and is based on information held by HMRC on individuals who could be liable to UK Income Tax.

The publication makes use of data sources collected by the ONS, including:

• The Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE) produced annually

• The Financial Survey of Pension Schemes (FSPS) produced quarterly

• The Wealth and Assets Survey (WAS) produced every 2 years

3.3 Data validation

Checks carried out on the data include:

• automated checks take place when loading data into the analysis database. Inconsistencies are flagged for further investigation

• datasets are discussed within the team and with other specialists within HMRC at the start and throughout the statistics production process

• any large changes in contributions, withdrawals, tax charges or relief figures from one statistical release to the next, and between comparable data sources are scrutinised

3.4 Data compilation

Aggregating data

Data is aggregated using National Insurance numbers. This is a unique number assigned to individuals and does not change.

4. Quality management

4.1 Quality assurance

All official statistics produced by KAI must meet the standards in the Code of Practice for Statistics produced by the UK Statistics Authority and all analysts adhere to best practice as set out in the ‘Quality’ pillar.

Analytical Quality Assurance describes the arrangements and procedures put in place to ensure analytical outputs are error free and fit-for-purpose. It is an essential part of KAI’s way of working as the complexity of our work and the speed at which we are asked to provide advice means there is a high risk of error which can have serious consequences on KAI’s and HMRC’s reputation, decisions, and in turn on peoples’ lives.

Every piece of analysis is unique, and as a result there is no single quality assurance (QA) checklist that contains all the QA tasks needed for every project. Nonetheless, analysts in KAI use a checklist that summarises the key QA tasks and is used as a starting point for teams when they are considering what QA actions to undertake.

Teams amend and adapt it as they see fit, to take account of the level of risk associated with their analysis, and the different QA tasks that are relevant to the work.

Analysts and managers construct a plan for all QA tasks, creating a checklist specific to the project. Analysts carry out the tasks during and at the end of the analysis.

Work is quality assured at various times through its iterations and then passed to the Senior Responsible Officer for final review and sign-off.

4.2 Quality assessment

The QA for this project adhered to the framework described in Section 4.1- Quality assurance of this quality report and the specific procedures undertaken were as follows:

Stage 1 – Specifying the question

Up to date documentation was agreed with stakeholders setting out outputs needed and by when; how the outputs will be used; and all the parameters required for the analysis.

Stage 2 – Developing the methodology

Methodology was agreed and developed in collaboration with other teams, ensuring it was fit for purpose and would deliver the required outputs.

Stage 3 – Building and populating a model/piece of code

Analysis was produced using the most appropriate software and in line with good practice guidance.

Data inputs were checked to ensure they were fit-for-purpose by reviewing available documentation and, where possible, through direct contact with data owners, where necessary, direct contact with suppliers.

QA of the input data was carried out.

The analysis was audited by someone other than the lead analyst – checking code and methodology.

Stage 4 – Running and testing the model/code

Results were compared with those produced in previous years and differences understood and determined to be genuine.

Results were determined to be explainable and in line with expectations.

Stage 5 – Drafting the final output

Checks were completed to ensure internal consistency (e.g. totals equal the sum of the components).

The final outputs were independently proofread and signed off by a senior statistician.

5. Relevance

5.1 User needs

This analysis is likely to be of interest to users under the following broad headings:

• national government – policy makers and MPs

• regional and local governments

• academia and research bodies

• media

• business community

• general public

5.2 User satisfaction

Formal investigations into user satisfaction have not been undertaken, however KAI are always open to ideas for new analysis to meet changing user requirements.

There is contact information for customers to give feedback and comments.

The pensions tax analysis team regularly communicate with HMRC and HM Treasury colleagues to ensure that these statistics meet their information requirements.

This publication considers the results of a consultation on changes to HMRC statistical publications.

5.3 Completeness

The statistics contained in this report can be considered as complete.

Where possible, the statistics are based on HMRC administrative data. ONS survey data is used for elements not covered by HMRC administrative data.

It is legal requirement for schemes and employers to report individual contributions made to pensions to HMRC, to ensure individuals pay the correct amounts of Income tax. It is also a legal requirement for both schemes and individuals to report AA and LTA charges to HMRC as well as taxable flexible payments.

There is no legal requirement for schemes to report contributions made via salary sacrifice to HMRC. ASHE has been used for statistics relating to salary sacrificed contributions.

There is no legal requirement for schemes, employers or individuals to report employer contributions to pensions to HMRC. The statistics use projections from complete outturn years of statistical returns along with ONS survey data and administrative returns to estimate these where totals are not available. Table titles and labels align with data source used to ensure coverage of the data source is adequately communicated with users.

LTA charges reported via Self Assessment are considered incomplete following scrutiny, as such these figures are not included in these statistics.

There is no legal requirement for schemes to report all non-taxable flexible payments from pensions, as such these figures are considered incomplete and are not included in these statistics.

6. Accuracy and reliability

6.1 Overall accuracy

For Table 2, Table 7, Table 8 and Table 9 the figures recorded are administrative data submitted by scheme providers, employers and individuals and is therefore fully dependant on the accuracy of returns.

The accuracy of Table 6 is largely determined by the accuracy of the annual claims return submitted by relief at source pension providers, survey data supplied by the ONS and HMRC’s SPI, RTI and Self Assessment data. Accuracy is also dependent on forecasting where returns are not available for employer contributions to relief at source schemes.

6.2 Sampling error

For Tables 2, 7, 8 and 9 the underlying data is based on returns from pension scheme providers, which they are obliged to complete. Sampling error is therefore not relevant for these tables.

For Table 6, data from the SPI, ASHE and WAS (sample surveys) are used. Information on the measures of precision can be found in the SPI supporting documentation. Information on the sampling error for ASHE can be found in the ONS Quality and Methodology report and for WAS can be found in the WAS Quality and Methodology report. RTI data, Self Assessment data and returns from pension providers are also used to produce estimates, and sampling error is not relevant for these data sources.

6.3 Non-sampling error

The accuracy of the analysis based on administrative data is addressed by eliminating non-sampling errors as much as possible through adherence to the quality assurance framework.

Non-response error

Pension scheme administrators are only required to report on individuals who have made relievable contributions, when completing the RPSCOM100 returns. Each tax year there have been a number of Pension scheme administrators that did not complete their Annual statistical return form by the required date. The proportion of late submission is reduced by reminders being included in HMRC’S Pension Scheme Newsletters. Pension scheme administrators who have not submitted a return by the required data are contacted by HMRC to remind them of their obligation.

Processing error

It is possible that errors exist in the code used to analyse and produce the statistics. This risk is reduced through developing a good understanding of the objectives, the code, the analysis, and the outputs, as well as through thoroughly documenting and quality assuring each phase of the statistical process.

Forecasting error

Where data for the relevant tax year is not available, forecasting methods are used. The main source of forecasting error in these statistics is where administrative returns are unavailable for some scheme providers, and where employer contributions to personal relief at source pensions is not a reporting requirement. This risk is mitigated against by contacting scheme providers who have not provided a return, and quality assurance of forecasting methods.

6.4 Data revision

Data revision – policy

The United Kingdom Statistics Authority (UKSA) Code of Practice for Statistics for Official Statistics requires all producers of Official Statistics to publish transparent guidance on the policy for revisions.

Data revision – practice

All figures in this publication are subject to revision where inconsistencies are identified.

Tables 2, 6, 7, 8 and 9 rely on administrative returns which can be amended. Tables will be revised accordingly when amendments are made.

6.5 Seasonal adjustment

Seasonal adjustment is not applicable for this analysis.

7. Timeliness and punctuality

7.1 Timeliness

These statistics are published annually in September to a pre-announced timetable in line with the national Code of Practice for Statistics. This allows sufficient time for capturing and uploading submissions with any related delays, for data validation and quality assurance steps, and finally for the compilation of the statistics themselves.

These statistics use the most recent, available year of data from each source.

The next scheduled release of these statistics is planned for Summer 2024. The earlier release will improve the timeliness of the publication and has been made possible by improving the efficiency of the methodology.

7.2 Punctuality

In accordance with the Code of Practice for Statistics for official statistics, the exact date of publication will be given not less than 4 weeks before publication on the Research and statistics calendar of GOV.UK.

Any delays to the publication date will be announced on the GOV.UK website.

The full publication calendar can be found on both the Schedule of updates for HMRC’s statistics and the Research and statistics calendar on GOV.UK.

8. Coherence and comparability

8.1 Geographical comparability

This analysis is presented for a single region – the UK.

8.2 Comparability over time

For the September 2023 publication, improvements have been made to the methodology for Table 9. Therefore, the figures are not comparable to previous publications of Table 9.

In the September 2022 publication, improvements were made to the data sources and methodology used for Table 6. Figures in Table 6 are not comparable to those published prior to September 2022.

8.3 Coherence – cross domain

ASHE can be used to estimate tax and national insurance contributions relief on occupational pension contributions. Where possible these statistics prioritise HMRC administrative data over survey data to improve accuracy. Therefore, other publications or analysis using ASHE may have inconsistencies to this publication.

8.4 Coherence – sub-annual and annual statistics

HMRC also publishes an Estimated cost of tax reliefs publication which is usually published shortly after the Private pension statistics and includes projections of Table 6 to estimate additional years. These 2 publications use the same methodology and figures where possible, however, due to the difference in publication dates the Private pension statistics may include more recent figures compared to projections published for the same tax year in the Estimated cost of tax reliefs publication. Figures are labelled as projections to make this clear.

8.5 Coherence – internal

Rounding of numbers may cause some minor internal coherence issues as the figures within a table may not sum to the total displayed.

9. Accessibility and Clarity

9.1 News release

Figures from this publication have been referenced by a number of industry articles since release.

9.2 Publication

The tables and associated commentary are published on the Private pension statistics webpage of GOV.UK. Tables are published in the OpenDocument format, and the associated commentary as an accessible HTML webpage.

Both documents comply with the accessibility regulations set out in the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018. Further information can be found in HMRC’s accessible documents policy.

9.3 Online databases

This analysis is not used in any online databases.

9.4 Micro-data access

Access to this data is not possible in micro-data form, due to HMRC’s legal duty to maintain the confidentiality of taxpayer information.

9.5 Documentation on methodology

The supporting Background and methodology document offers information on the methodology used to produce these statistics.

9.6 Quality documentation

All official statistics produced by KAI must meet the standards in the Code of Practice produced by the UK Statistics Authority and all analysts adhere to best practice as set out in the ‘Quality’ pillar.

10. Cost and burden

Because all necessary data for this publication is obtained from administrative sources, ONS surveys or previously published statistics, there is no additional burden on businesses to provide information.

Previously this publication used information requested from the APSS107 from Relief at Source providers. This statistical return was decommissioned and returns are not required from tax year 2023 to 2024 onwards, as confirmed in the Pension schemes newsletter 149 — April 2023

It is estimated to take about 45 days full time equivalent work to produce the annual publication.

11. Confidentiality

11.1 Confidentiality – policy

HMRC has a legal duty to maintain the confidentiality of taxpayer information.

Section 18(1) of the Commissioners for Revenue and Customs Act 2005 (CRCA) sets out our duty of confidentiality.

This analysis complies with this requirement.

11.2 Confidentiality – data treatment

All data is handled internally in line with the HMRC statistics policy on confidentiality and access to third party information.

There is no disclosure risk in these statistics given the large number of individuals contributing to and withdrawing from pensions.

Further information on anonymisation and data confidentiality best practice can be found on the Government Statistical Service’s website.