Pensions Update - February 2012

During 2009 and 2010, a number of extensions were granted to the statutory deadlines for submission of funding proposals. A funding proposal is a recovery plan which must be submitted to the Pensions Board when a defined benefit pension scheme fails to meet the statutory funding standard. Effectively, there is currently no deadline for making such submissions. On 28 October 2011, the Irish government announced changes to the funding standard for defined benefit schemes. On foot of that announcement, the Pensions Board was due to publish revised guidelines for defined benefit schemes in deficit and to announce new deadlines by which schemes in deficit must submit a recovery plan to the Board.