Thinking about opting out?

One of the great things about a workplace pension is that we pay into it as well as you. Plus, you get extra money from the government, called tax relief, so if you opt out of the pension scheme, or stop paying into your pension, IMI’s contributions will stop and the extra money from the government will also stop.

If you feel opting out is right for you, head to the bottom of this page.

Did you know?

Your pension money is invested to help it grow. When your investments grow, you earn investment returns on your pension savings. You also earn returns on any previous returns you’ve earned. So, when you save money, you earn returns on your savings and on the previous returns you’ve built up. This is called compounding and it can make a big difference to the amount of your pension savings over time.

Retirement vs the here and now

Retirement may seem like a long way off and the here and now is what matters more, but we hope we’ve explained how important it is to take action for your future and how a workplace pension is one of the easiest ways to help you build for a better tomorrow.

How can I opt out?

You can opt out online by going to IMI Optimize or Mercer Money.

Alternatively, speak to your HR representative who may be able to give you a paper form to complete.

If you opt out of the IMI scheme within one month of being automatically enrolled, you’ll be treated as if you had never joined the scheme and any money that you’ve paid in will be refunded in full.

You’ll only get back the contributions you’ve made. You won’t get the contributions from IMI or any tax relief.

If you decide to opt out more than one month after you’ve been set up in the IMI workplace pension, any contributions you’ve made will usually be held in the scheme. This will be until you can begin taking the money out of your pension pot when you retire (this is unless the pension scheme’s rules allow your own contributions to be refunded).

How long does opting out last for?

Because the government wants to encourage everyone to save, you’ll automatically be re-enrolled every three years and would need to opt out of the scheme again, if you still want to.

If you change your mind, you can ask to re-join the scheme at any time. Do be aware that we only have to address any requests to re-join once every 12 months.