Yesterday the Aries Simplification Working Group met to pool information on a wide range of issues which have emerged, both technical and procedural, in the wake of the Finance Act 2004 and the Pensions Act 2004 . The meeting was attended by over 40 representatives of life offices, pension funds, consultants, third party administrators and IFAs. The Group will meet again on 1 February 2005, and in the interim agreed to continue the discussion in the Aries Discussion Zone on this website.

Aries is monitoring and reporting here on developments in 'simplification' in the run-up to A-Day; in particular, consultations on draft SIs, Revenue Guidance, and Codes of Practice. For example, while yesterday's meeting was going on, the DWP published a short draft set of amending regs: The Contracting-out, Protected Rights and Safeguarded Rights (Transfer Payment) Amendment Regulations 2005. This draft SI aims to do two things:

1. amend the Contracting-out (Transfer and Transfer Payment) Regs (SI 1996/1462) and the Protected Rights (Transfer) Regs (SI 1996/1461) to cover "overseas arrangements" as well as overseas schemes; and
2. remove the present requirement for the trustees of a transferring scheme to satisfy themselves that the member has permanently emigrated, before making a transfer payment of contracted-out or safeguarded pension rights to an overseas pension scheme or arrangement.

The consultation closes on 26 January 2005. The Revenue is expected to amend its rules at the same time as the Regs are laid, so that in the run-up to A day the interface between the respective sets of requirements is more satisfactory.