FSCA Contributions and Prescribed Formats

Following our publication about the Financial Sector Conduct Authority’s Conduct Standard 1 of 2022 relating to the payment of retirement fund contributions, we now set out the compulsory reporting format that has been prescribed under the Conduct Standard.

Our payroll and employee benefits consulting expertise fits together to ensure our clients remain compliant with an ever-changing regulatory landscape.

Contributions and prescribed formats

The FSCA has published the following documents, which are available on its website at https://www.fsca.co.za/Regulatory%20Frameworks/Pages/Notices.aspx

FSCA RF Notice 14 of 2022: determination of format of documents in respect of requirements related to the payment of pension fund contributions, and

FSCA Communication 27 of 2022 (RF): publication of determination of format of documents in respect of requirements related to the payment of pension fund contributions.

Finalisation of the Conduct Standard

Conduct Standard 1 of 2022 (the Conduct Standard) about contributions, contributions statements, and reporting has now been published and is the law. The effective date set for the Conduct Standard is 20 February 2023. The existing Regulations of the Pension Funds Act (the Act) are repealed on the same date.

Publication of the prescribed reporting

The three prescribed formats are for the:

  1. notification to and request by a fund to an employer;
  2. reporting by a fund of contraventions to the FSCA; and
  3. reporting by a fund of contraventions to the South African Police Services (SAPS).

1. Notification to, and request by a fund to an employer

A fund must notify every participating employer before the employer starts participating in the fund, and every year, of the employer’s duties, obligations, and liability under section 13A of the Act and the Conduct Standard. This notification to the employer is the first of the prescribed formats. This notification (and request) is directed by the fund to the Managing Director (or equivalent) at the employer.

The prescribed notice also requires that (both before the employer participates in the fund and on an ongoing annual basis) a request is made by the fund to the employer to notify the fund of the “identity” and “particulars” of the person(s) at the employer who are personally liable for compliance with section 13A of the Act which provides for both the payment of contributions and the provision of contribution schedules.

For different types of employer entities, the persons to be notified by the employer of the fund may be different. For a company, it is “every director who is regularly involved in the management of the company’s financial affairs”.

The employer must give the requested information to the fund within 14 days.

The other two prescribed formats are the report by the fund to the FSCA and the report by the fund to SAPS.

2. The report to the FSCA

When a fund reports contraventions relating to contributions or contributions statements to the FSCA as required by the Conduct Standard, it must do so in a prescribed format.

This report requires:

    • The date the contravention was reported to the board;
    • The nature of the contravention;
    • A description of the action the board will take to remedy the contravention;
    • That this course of action is set out in the monthly arrear contribution report uploaded to the FSCA’s online system; and
    • That further updates are provided to the FSCA on the contraventions and actions taken on a monthly basis.

In addition, monthly updated reports by the fund to the FSCA are required until the contravention has been resolved.

3. The report to the SAPS

The prescribed format of the report by a fund to the SAPS is a sworn affidavit and includes the requirement for attaching annexures containing evidence of what is alleged in the affidavit.

The sworn affidavit is completed by the person specified in section 13A(6) of the Act, which is either the Principal Officer or the person authorised by the fund to monitor contributions (often called “the monitoring person” or the “authorised person”).

The report requires the provision of the following information to SAPS, amongst others:

    • The reports, as required by the Act, that the fund has made so far in relation to the contraventions e.g. to the Principal Officer/monitoring person, the board of the fund, the FSCA, and members;
    • The details of the contributions e.g. the rules requiring contributions by the employer;
    • the requirement of the employer to deduct contributions and pay them to the fund;
    • The employer’s information;
    • The persons at the employer personally liable for contributions contraventions (as notified to the fund) or director’s names (if liable persons were not notified to the fund); and
    • Information and documents about action previously taken by the fund.

Annexures required: resolution appointing monitoring person or Principal Officer, fund’s registration certificate, the rules, and special rules (if applicable), the proof of the employer’s participation in the fund; prescribed requests from the fund, and notifications from the employer about persons liable at the employer.

Formats that are not prescribed

The format of the reports to the monitoring person/Principal Officer, the board, and to members is not prescribed. The format of contribution statements is not prescribed, even though the content of the statements is prescribed.

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