RPSM04105020 - Technical Pages: Taxation: Other tax charges: How a scheme can be de-registered

How a scheme can be de-registered

HMRC may withdraw the registration of a pension scheme on the following grounds.

• The scheme has made scheme chargeable payments and the total of these in any 12 month period exceeds the de-registration threshold set out in RPSM04105030.
• The scheme administrator has failed to pay a substantial amount of tax, or interest on tax, which they are liable for under Part 4 of FA 2004.
• The scheme administrator has failed to provide information which HMRC has required them to provide under Part 4 of FA 2004, and the failure is significant. (This means that either the amount of information the scheme administrator has failed to provide is substantial, or the failure to provide the information is likely to result in serious prejudice to the assessment or collection of tax.)
• The application to register the pension scheme contained information that was materially incorrect.
• Any other information provided to HMRC was materially incorrect.
• A declaration accompanying the application to register the pension scheme was materially false.
• Any other declaration to HMRC in respect of other information given to HMRC was materially false.
• There is no scheme administrator.

These are the only grounds on which a registered pension scheme may be de-registered and only HMRC can de-register a scheme. A scheme cannot ask to be de-registered.

Although HMRC has the power to de-register a scheme in these circumstances, it is not required to do so. The circumstances of a particular case can be taken into account.

HMRC can only withdraw registration from an entire pension scheme, and not from an arrangement or arrangements within the scheme.