Declaration of compliance, re-enrolment and pension contribution deadlines for employer clients

Written by the Mipp team

Published: 19 October 2026 | Last checked against The Pensions Regulator: 19 October 2026 | Accurate as of October 2026

Every employer with auto-enrolment duties has three deadlines that keep coming back. Contributions taken from pay must reach the pension scheme by the 22nd of the next month (the 19th by cheque). The declaration of compliance is due within five calendar months of the duties start date. Then every three years, the employer re-enrols eligible staff and completes a re-declaration of compliance within five calendar months of the third anniversary.

This guide is for small UK practices that run payroll or advise employer clients. It explains each deadline with current dates, what The Pensions Regulator (TPR) can fine for, and how to keep every client's dates in one place. If you complete declarations for clients, the legal duty is still the employer's. TPR is clear that an employer can be fined even when an adviser was doing the work.

The three auto-enrolment deadlines at a glance

Pension contributions: by the 22nd

The employer agrees payment dates with the scheme provider. By law, when contributions are taken from staff pay, they must be paid to the scheme by the 22nd of the next month, or the 19th if paying by cheque. TPR can fine an employer who doesn't pay by the date agreed with the scheme.

Example: contributions taken from October 2026 pay are due by 22 November 2026, which is a Sunday. Check with the scheme when a payment has to arrive if the date falls at a weekend.

There are special rules for the first payment for each new member. Some schemes let employers pay the first three months of contributions together, on the 22nd of the fourth month, so that staff who opt out can be refunded more easily. Ask the scheme provider what it allows.

For 2026/27, the minimum contribution is 8% of qualifying earnings, with at least 3% from the employer. Qualifying earnings are those between £6,240 and £50,270 a year. These figures are reviewed every year.

The declaration of compliance: within five months

The declaration of compliance tells TPR how the employer has met its duties. It must be completed by the end of the five calendar months beginning with the duties start date, even if nobody had to be enrolled.

The deadline isn't always the end of a month: it depends on the day the duties started. If it falls on a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday, TPR allows the declaration on the next working day.

Some practical points from TPR's adviser guidance:

• It can't be submitted before the duties start date, and if the employer used postponement, not until the postponement period has ended. That can leave very little time, so fill in the details as you go.
• You'll need the employer's PAYE reference and either their letter code or their Accounts Office reference. You'll also need staff numbers on the duties start date and the scheme's employer pension scheme reference or registry number.
• Advisers can act on behalf of several employers from one account on TPR's declaration service.

Re-enrolment and re-declaration: every three years

Every three years, the employer must put back into a qualifying scheme any staff who left it or reduced their contributions and who now meet the criteria. TPR's guidance for re-enrolment gives these criteria as aged 22 up to State Pension age and earning over £10,000 a year (£833 a month, or £192 a week). The employer then completes a re-declaration of compliance. If nobody needs re-enrolling, the re-declaration is still required.

Choosing the re-enrolment date. TPR tells employers to use the third anniversary of their duties start date. They can choose any date from three months before to three months after it. The same date applies to every member of staff being re-enrolled. Postponement can't be used for staff being re-enrolled.

Within six weeks of the re-enrolment date, eligible staff must be put back into the scheme and written to individually.

Re-declaration deadline. This is the end of five calendar months beginning with the third anniversary. It doesn't move if the employer chose a different re-enrolment date inside the window.

Worked example:

The second cycle moves. For the first re-enrolment, everything is anchored on the duties start date. From then on, TPR says the dates move to the third anniversary of the employer's most recent re-enrolment date. Recording the date actually used is what keeps the next cycle right.

What happens if a deadline is missed

TPR may first send a warning letter or a statutory notice with a new deadline. After that, it can issue:

• A fixed penalty notice: £400.
• An escalating penalty notice: a daily fine from £50 to £10,000, depending on the number of staff, that keeps growing until the employer complies.

An employer who complies late is also expected to backdate missed contributions. A review of a notice must be requested within 28 days of the date on the notice.

A register for every employer client

For each employer client, three facts generate every date in this guide:

1. The duties start date (sometimes called the staging date), from TPR's letters.
2. The pension scheme, and any earlier payment date it sets.
3. The actual re-enrolment date used in each cycle.

Record them once, and the contribution dates, the declaration and each re-declaration follow from them. Without the third, the second re-enrolment cycle is easy to get wrong.

How Mipp schedules auto-enrolment deadlines

In Mipp, tick Auto-enrolment on a client's compliance details, choose the pension provider (NEST, NOW: Pensions, The People's Pension or another scheme by name), and enter the staging or duties start date. From that one date, Mipp schedules:

• "Pension contributions" for each month of pay, due on the 22nd of the next month.
• The declaration of compliance, due at the end of the five calendar months beginning with the duties start date.
• Each re-enrolment window, due at the end of the six-month window, and the re-declaration of compliance, due five calendar months from the third anniversary. Both appear once they fall within the next 12 months.

When you mark a re-enrolment done, Mipp asks for the actual re-enrolment date you used. That date sets the next cycle, as TPR's rules require, and doesn't move the current re-declaration.

These deadlines sit on the Payroll & PAYE tab of the Compliance view, alongside payroll runs, P60s and P11Ds, and appear as tasks on each client's board. You can also see them in Google, Outlook or Apple calendars through Mipp's private calendar feed.

Mipp tracks the dates. It doesn't assess staff, calculate contributions, submit declarations to TPR, record whether contributions were paid, or email your clients. See how this fits into Mipp's accountancy practice management software, and for the wider payroll calendar, see the UK tax deadlines for 2026-27.

Deadline dates in Mipp are a planning aid, calculated from the information you enter using standard UK rules. Always check them against The Pensions Regulator.

Frequently asked questions

When is the declaration of compliance due?

By the end of the five calendar months beginning with the employer's duties start date. For duties starting on 1 April 2024, it was due by 31 August 2024.

Does an employer need a declaration of compliance if nobody was enrolled?

Yes. A declaration of compliance must be completed for every employer that had staff on its duties start date, even if nobody had to be enrolled.

When is the re-declaration of compliance due?

By the end of the five calendar months beginning with the third anniversary of the duties start date, for the first cycle. Later cycles move to the third anniversary of the most recent re-enrolment date.

How often does re-enrolment happen?

Every three years. The employer can choose a re-enrolment date from three months before to three months after the anniversary.

When must pension contributions be paid?

Contributions taken from pay must reach the scheme by the 22nd of the next month, or the 19th if paid by cheque, unless the scheme sets an earlier date.

Can an accountant complete the declaration for a client?

Yes. Advisers can act on behalf of employers on TPR's declaration service, but the legal duty stays with the employer.

Keep every employer client's pension dates in Mipp

Enter one duties start date and Mipp schedules the contributions, the declaration and every re-declaration. Start a 14-day free trial. You add a card to start, and nothing is charged for 14 days. Cancel anytime. See pricing for plans.

Sources

All checked on Monday 19 October 2026. Accurate as of October 2026.

1. The Pensions Regulator, Declaration of compliance (guide for business advisers). https://www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk/en/business-advisers/automatic-enrolment-guide-for-business-advisers/declaration-of-compliance
2. The Pensions Regulator, Step 4: declare your compliance. https://www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk/en/employers/new-employers/im-an-employer-who-has-to-provide-a-pension/declare-your-compliance
3. The Pensions Regulator, Re-enrolment and re-declaration (guide for business advisers). https://www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk/en/business-advisers/automatic-enrolment-guide-for-business-advisers/re-enrolment-and-re-declaration
4. The Pensions Regulator, Complete your re-declaration of compliance by your deadline. https://www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk/en/employers/re-enrolment/i-am-or-will-be-an-employer-with-staff-to-put-back-into-my-scheme/complete-your-re-declaration-of-compliance-by-your-deadline
5. The Pensions Regulator, Making contributions to your pension scheme (payment dates, first payments, 2026/27 earnings range). https://www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk/en/employers/new-employers/im-an-employer-who-has-to-provide-a-pension/choose-a-pension-scheme/understanding-your-costs/making-contributions-to-your-pension-scheme
6. The Pensions Regulator, How we enforce (warning letters, fixed and escalating penalties). https://www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk/en/employers/warnings-notices-and-payment-of-fines/how-we-enforce
7. legislation.gov.uk, The Employers' Duties (Registration and Compliance) Regulations 2010. https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2010/5