Under the new regime there will be the same rules for any type of scheme allowing tax deductions to the employer in respect of employer contributions to a registered pension scheme. This is subject to the contributions actually being paid in the period, a spreading of tax relief for very large payments (over £500,000) and the payment being made 'wholly and exclusively' for the purposes of the trade.
This will give people who run their own companies considerable flexibility in deciding when to make payments into a pension fund and whether the payments should be made by the company (ie the employer) or the individual.
The reason for having a ‘light touch’ approach to tax relief for employer contributions is that there are key controls for all schemes in the annual allowance and the lifetime allowance. The effect of these will limit the amount of tax efficient contributions that may be made.