PSE AVCs and minimum wage limit - did payroll mess up?

[Grimwart]

I'm in a position where I'd like to maximise my AVC contribution up to the PSE limit to maximise tax efficiency. In the past I found the limit by bumping up my contribution a little each week until I went over and my pension appeared in the deductions column on the right hand side of the payslip. Then I just backed off a little and all was good.

Since the end of the share scheme, my annual leave purchase (I reached 20 years service, so much for a temporary job...) and the new minimum wage I recalculated and starting increasing my contribution each week to find my new limit.

The problem is I never found a limit. Either I've missed something, or payroll have messed up and are allowing me to over-sacrifice and go below minimum wage. Which would be great for tax purposes, but illegal...

I'd appreciate it if the great minds here could check over my figures and let me know if I missed something obvious or if payroll really did screw up.

My last payslip:

Basic Pay (37 hours) 505.13
Delivery supplement 17.98
Delivery supplement 11.36
PSE Adj RMCPP EE -31.39
PSE Adj LSB EE -5.23
PSE Adj RMCPP DC AVC -62.77
Gross Pay 435.08

Thanks in advance

[JKSmudge]

37 x £12.21 ph is £451.77 as minimum wage limit. So not sure what's happening there.

£242.01 is the weekly threshold for NI , so you should be paying £15.45 pw in NI contributions on Gross Pay of 435.08 if my sums are correct.

However that is below minmum, so not sure if they calculate each week or if done annually for contrubutions.

[RobertT]

There are people on here with more experience of PSE limits than me, but I always thought it was based on basic pay and went by this calculation:

Basic hourly pay – national minimum wage x basic hours worked = max AVC contribution.
So based on your figures:

13.64 – 12.21 = 1.43 x 37 = 52.91

When including AVC and LSB, that would put you over the limit by about £15 per week.

If they actually include the delivery supplements too, the weekly limit would be £82.51.

[heapsy]

There are people on here with more experience of PSE limits than me, but I always thought it was based on basic pay and went by this calculation:

Basic hourly pay – national minimum wage x basic hours worked = max AVC contribution.
So based on your figures:

13.64 – 12.21 = 1.43 x 37 = 52.91

When including AVC and LSB, that would put you over the limit by about £15 per week.

If they actually include the delivery supplements too, the weekly limit would be £82.51.

It is. Overtime and shift allowances don't count. I'm 37hr contract. I pay 1% lump sum booster, plus 6% AVCs. This last figure is equal to my standard weekly pension payment, and I'm within PSE. I'm close to the limit for PSE.

[Grimwart]

Thank you all for looking.

I've increased my AVC to 12% this week, I'll see what happens when payslips are available tonight...

[heapsy]

Thank you all for looking.

I've increased my AVC to 12% this week, I'll see what happens when payslips are available tonight...

You'll drop out of PSE.

[Alantidey]

I’m in PSE and I’m paying 13.3% (£67.18) as an AVC, if that helps. I worked it out to be the closest percentage to what I managed to manually calculate which was £67.35.

By paying as a % rate this should take into consideration any changes to the pay rise which is pending.