Shropshire small businesses must contribute to their employees' pension funds, according to a Government announcement today, a specialist has warned.

Nigel Lomax who runs small business tax and accountancy firm, TaxAssist Accountants, in Shrewsbury said that although the new law would be phased in from 2012, with smaller owner-managed firms not being affected until 2014, it was vital to get schemes in place. He comments:

"Following the Government's announcement, all employers will, for the first time, be required to automatically enrol eligible employees into a pension scheme and pay pension contributions.  Shropshire small businesses should put their own pension scheme in place for employees, rather than rely on Government schemes, which may not be the best solution for their company.

"Even if businesses already have a workplace pension scheme, it may have to change to comply with the new law. Owner managers across Shropshire will want to keep control of their employee benefits packages."

A Pensions Regulator will police and enforce the new law, which applies to companies with over 800 employees from October 2012 and then will be staged over four years, with companies who have less than 50 employees affected from August 2014. Qualifying employees will need to put 8% of their earnings into their pension pot, with at least 3% of that total contributed by their employer.

"Business owners can face fines of up to £5,000 or even imprisonment for non compliance," said Nigel Lomax. "Employers can avoid much of the administration burden associated with automatic enrolment by setting up their own pension scheme."

TaxAssist Accountants Shrewsbury is a local business itself, providing tax and accountancy advice and services to more than 400 small businesses.