Income Tax (Earnings and Pensions) Act 2003 section 387

Meaning of "non-approved retirement benefits scheme"

Section 387 defines what is meant by a "non-approved retirement benefits scheme" for the purposes of the tax rules on retirement benefits.

• A non-approved retirement benefits scheme is a retirement benefits scheme that does not have approved tax status.
• The definition is derived from earlier legislation, specifically section 596(1) of the Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1988.
• This distinction matters because benefits from non-approved schemes are subject to different (generally less favourable) tax treatment than those from approved schemes.
• The definition was subsequently affected by amendments made by the Finance Act 2004 as part of the wider pension simplification reforms.