As a GP, there’s a legal requirement you might need to complete to keep your pension record up-to-date – and you may not even be aware of it.
Earlier this year, a report on NHS pensions raised concerns that some GPs may not have fulfilled their duty to report annual earnings information.
Those who completed type 2 work throughout the year must submit a self-assessment form to make sure they’ve paid pension contributions at the right tier.
If this doesn’t sound familiar to you, you’re not alone – the British Medical Association says many sessional GPs remain unaware of the requirement.
Don’t panic if you’re one of those practitioners. We can answer any questions you have about the type 2 form and help you prepare it in time for the 28 February 2019 deadline for 2017/18.
In the meantime, here are some pointers to help you understand the self-assessment form and work out if you need to complete it.
What is a type 2 self-assessment form?
Essentially, type 2 forms ensure you’ve made the right contributions to your pension.
The form is used to bring together your earnings across all your practitioner roles if you have done any type 2 work over the last financial year.
NHS pension contributions are made on a tiered basis, so the form is needed to check you’re on the correct tier, so have paid the right amount.
Who needs to complete one?
All GPs who have done type 2 work in 2017/18 will need to complete the form.
This gets a little more complicated when you look at what constitutes type 2 work. A type 2 medical practitioner is:
- a salaried GP formally employed by a GP practice, Alternative Provider Medical Services contractor, or Local Health Board.
- a long-term fee-based or self-employed GP who works for any of the above, generally for a period of six months or more
- a GP who works solely for an out-of-hours provider that is not an NHS Trust or Foundation Trust, either on an employed or self-employed basis
- a GP who works for a Clinical Commissioning Group on a self-employed basis
- a GP ‘with special interests’.
Very broadly, anything other than a principal GP or locum counts as type 2 – but always check your particular circumstances before making finance or compliance decisions.
How to complete and submit the form
Every year, the self-assessment form is made available on the NHS pensions website, here.
You should expect to see the form for 2017/18 around November or December this year.
Once you’ve completed the form, you can submit it online to Primary Care Support England, or send it by post.
Depending on your earnings, you may then owe pension contributions, or you might be due a refund.
Get in touch
Don’t hesitate to contact us if you’re not sure whether you need to submit the form, or if you have any questions about completing it.
Contact us at 020 8643 1166 to find out how we can help prepare your superannuation, or read more about our services for doctors.
Dick Haffenden
