Advantages of a workplace pension

Being a member of the BNP Paribas Pension means you’ll receive extra money to help boost your retirement income. You'll often receive additional benefits as part of the Plan, too. Find out more about the advantages of having a workplace pension below.

Your pension is yours for life. Even if you change employers, your pension savings remain yours. The longer you save the more time there is for your money to grow, although this is not guaranteed. So, the earlier you start contributing the better.

Consider David and Mike. David starts investing £100 a month when he is 25; Mike invests £200 a month from the age of 45. By retirement, both have saved the same amount (£48,000). However, assuming both their investments grow at 5% a year, David’s ends up with almost twice as much as Mike simply because his money is invested for longer.

This example uses assumed figures and is for illustrative purposes only

Unless you choose to transfer your pension savings, any money you invest in your pension will normally remain in your plan until you decide to take your benefits. The minimum age you can normally access your pension savings is currently 55, and is due to rise to 57 on 6 April 2028, unless you have a lower protected pension age.

Find out more about the types of pension available in the UK, and the differences between them.

What is a workplace pension?

Your workplace pension is a tax-efficient investment vehicle that you use to save for retirement. You put money in every month and your employer will make contributions as well. Over the years, you may end up with a significant amount of money. It could be one of your most valuable assets and is probably among the most important benefits your employer provides.

Four essential facts

You become a member automatically – As an employee of BNP Paribas, you become a member of the Plan automatically regardless of your age or salary. This is thanks to something called contractual enrolment. You have the right to opt out if you choose.

You’re in control of your savings – if you don’t make any choices and you'd rather leave it up to the experts your plan will be invested in your plan’s ‘default’ investment option. Alternatively, you can decide how the money in your pension is invested through the range of funds offered in your plan. When the time comes to take money out of your pension, you will be able to choose what you do with your savings, subject to your plan’s rules. Although your pension will have a default retirement age, you can adjust this at any time if it doesn’t match your plans. The minimum age you can normally access your pension savings is currently 55, and is due to rise to 57 on 6 April 2028, unless you have a lower protected pension age. Find out what affect your retirement age has on your pension savings.

You don’t lose your money if you move jobs – if you change employer in the future, the regular contributions into your workplace pension will stop but the savings you’ve built will stay invested in your account and you will still be able to manage them and have access to them when the time comes. You may also have the option of transferring your pension savings into your new employer’s workplace plan, or into a private pension. Tax treatment depends on individual circumstances and all tax rules may change in the future. Currently, withdrawals from a pension product will not normally be possible until you reach age 55 (57 from 2028). It’s important to remember that the value of investments can go down as well as up, so you may get back less than you invest.

This isn’t the State Pension – the State Pension is paid by the government when you reach retirement age and would be paid in addition to your workplace pension. The amount you receive from the State Pension is based on the National Insurance contributions you have paid. You can check what age you are eligible for the state pension using the GOV.UK website.

What is the State Pension?

A regular lifelong income payable by the UK government that you may qualify for once you reach State Pension age. In the UK, the amount you get depends on your National Insurance contribution record. The State pension age for men and women is currently 66. It's due to rise further to 67 between 2026-28 and to 68 between 2044-46.

The State Pension age has changed over the last two decades and is reviewed at least once every five years, so could change in the future.