Welcome to BBC LifePlan

As a member of LifePlan your contributions will be met through a salary sacrifice arrangement.  This is called "Smart Pensions".  Your basic salary will be reduced by the amount you have chosen to contribute to LifePlan and as a result you would also pay less income tax.  To Summarise:

• This is a contractual arrangement between you and the BBC
• You will have a base salary (for example your basic salary before adjustment for Smart Pensions) which increases with pay reviews
• Your basic salary (Contractual pay) is reduced by the amount you choose to pay into LifePlan. However, your basic pay cannot reduce to a level lower than the current National Minimum Wage.  If you elect a very high contribution rate you will need to keep this under review to keep your salary above the national minimum wage.
• Therefore you do not pay contributions directly
• The BBC will pay to LifePlan a contribution equal to the amount you have sacrificed through Smart Pensions, plus the BBC will make a contribution on your behalf, details are shown below.  Because your basic salary is lower, you would also pay less income tax.
• SMART pensions can offer valuable savings however it may not be suitable for everyone. Salary sacrifice may impact certain State benefits, the amount you can borrow and redundancy and sickness benefits
• If you are in any doubt about its suitability for your own personal circumstances you should contact a financial adviser. You may be charged for this advice.
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It's vital to prepare for retirement, and one of the most effective ways to do that is by joining LifePlan. LifePlan works like this: you decide how much you want to contribute, from 5% of your salary, and the BBC contributes as shown below.

Tax treatment will depend on your individual circumstances and may be subject to change.

Please remember that the value of your investment is not guaranteed and can go down as well as up depending on investment performance. You could get back less than has been paid in.

For example, a member contribution of 13% of salary, plus the maximum BBC contribution of 10% would mean a contribution of 23% into your LifePlan.

The BBC only makes a contribution for staff employed on a continuing or fixed term contract and not already contributing to another BBC pension arrangement.

The sooner you join LifePlan, the sooner you benefit from BBC contributions and National Insurance savings,  So, even if you only put in a small amount, you will begin to see the benefitts.

Contribution examples

The table below shows what a salary contribution of 5% means for different income levels.  

Automatic enrolment is the Government's way of encouraging people to save for retirement. If you are already a member of a qualifying arrangement like LifePlan you may not be subject to this requirement. For further details on how automatic enrolment affects you please visit the myPension site on Gateway.
  

The annual allowance is the maximum amount that can be contributed to all your pensions in one tax year, without incurring a tax charge.  The standard maximum is currently £60,000 (tax year 2025/2026). For more information on the annual allowance please click here.

These allowances restrict the value of tax-free lump sums (or the tax-free element of lump sums) you can receive from your pensions. The Lump Sum Allowance limits those you receive in your lifetime, and the Lump Sum and Death Benefit Allowance restricts the combined total of tax-free lump sums paid during your lifetime and after your death.

For tax year 2025/26 the standard Lump Sum Allowance is £268,275 and the standard Lump Sum & Death Benefit Allowance is £1,073,100. Your remaining allowances reduce each time you take benefits. Your personal allowances may be higher than the standard amounts if you've been granted one or more of the types of protections by HMRC. For more information on the Lump Sum Allowance and Lump Sum & Death Benefit Allowance please click here