HMRC have published a look up service that allows scheme administrators to check the status of a Lifetime Allowance protection certificate.
However, the look up service does not give all the necessary confirmation to allow NHS Pensions to calculate a members Lifetime Allowance position for every member.
Due to the limitations of the look up service NHS Pensions requires that members continue to provide:
- copies of any Lifetime Allowance protection certificates they hold, or
- a hard copy of the electronic notification, if they have been sent an electronic notification from HMRC.
Action for NHS employers:
NHS employers must continue to send copies of the certificate/electronic notification to NHS Pensions, to allow the correct calculation of the members Lifetime Allowance position. Failure to provide copies may cause the authorisation of the member’s benefits to be delayed, or for a Lifetime Allowance charge to be applied, and the member’s benefits to be reduced.