Helen Dean, executive director of product and marketing at NEST, says:
“NEST Web Services revolutionises auto enrolment for employers by automating their administration and integrating it with payroll systems.
We listened to payroll software developers and understand that the payroll process, whether managed by the employer or their adviser, is crucial to auto enrolment’s continued success. It holds all the vital information for worker assessments and contributions. Rather than duplicate work for employers, we have integrated the two processes, reducing time and complexity. ‘NEST has been set up to support the roll-out of auto enrolment and to be ready to work at scale. NEST Web Services is a part of helping ensure we are ready for the next stages. With thousands of SMEs being brought into auto enrolment in the coming years, we need to make sure that the industry continues to innovate in order to help employers meet their duties.” The new NEST Web Services capabilities make employer auto enrolment processes faster and more streamlined. NEST Web Services is fully flexible. Payroll developers can choose to build one or all 9 web services. NEST Web Services can be used to: Set up a new employer Other than accepting NEST’s terms and conditions and setting up payment data, all other parts of the set-up process can be completed automatically through the payroll system. 2. Retrieve current set-up details Retrieves employer set-up data to ensure that data in NEST and the payroll software match 3. Enrol workers Sends all worker enrolment data direct to NEST via payroll software 4. Update contributions Sends NEST the earnings and contribution details for a particular contribution schedule. It will also be used to notify NEST where there won’t be contributions 5. Approve for payment Sends NEST an employer’s confirmation that payment of a contribution schedule for an agreed amount will be made by the employer (Direct Credit or Debit Card) or can be collected by NEST (Direct Debit). 6. Retrieve schedules Retrieves a list of due and overdue contribution schedules, and their current status, from NEST 7. Retrieve opt-outs Retrieves a list of members who have opted out within a selected date range from NEST 8. Retrieve stopped contributions Retrieves a list of members who have instructed NEST they wish to stop contributing, within a selected date range 9. Retrieve refunds. Retrieves a list of refunds made to an employer’s refund bank account from NEST 1.
Payroll providers who want to adopt NEST Web Services can request the technical specification from the NEST website . NEST will also be providing a testing platform for payroll software providers to use, free of charge.
Karen Thomson, Associate Director of Policy, Research, and Strategic Visibility at CIPP commented:
“The CIPP is pleased to support NEST’s new initiative of providing web services to employers. This service will also provide a much easier route for information to flow from payroll systems to NEST where the payroll and automatic enrolment service is provided by a payroll service provider e.g. an accountant or payroll bureau. The CIPP looks forward to its release later this year and would encourage payroll software providers to offer this facility to their customers, especially those wishing to use NEST.”
Automatic enrolment – providing a point of contact to The Pensions Regulator 12 June 2015
By the end of the summer, The Pensions Regulator will have written to every employer in the UK to tell them the date at which they need to be ready to enrol their eligible staff into a workplace pension. The letter also asks employers to nominate primary and secondary contacts.
The letter also asks employers to nominate primary and secondary contacts, in order that regular and useful information from the regulator can be received in the run up to the date at which your duties begin.
Primary contact This is the most senior person at the employer who is legally responsible for ensuring compliance with the automatic enrolment duties. In a small business, this is likely to be the business owner.
CIPP Policy News Journal
25/04/2016, Page 319 of 453
Made with FlippingBook - Online magazine maker