Company pensions

There are several ways to boost your employer pension:

• Pay into the additional voluntary contribution scheme (AVC). These run alongside the Company Pension scheme and are provided by the employer, although the AVCs cannot be taken to another job and there may be a limited investment choice

• Pay into a free-standing additional voluntary contribution scheme (FSAVC). These are totally separate from the Company Pension schemes. Higher charges than AVCs may make these less attractive, but they are more flexible as they can be taken with you if you change employer

• Take out a Stakeholder Pension. Provided you earn £30,000 or less each year and are not a controlling director of your company, you can pay in £3,600 a year (including tax relief) into a Stakeholder Pension. The charges are low, and these plans are flexible, so you can take them with you when you move jobs, take your pension at a different time to your employer's scheme etc

How much will I get when I retire?
How much you get will depend on the type of scheme you have.

For a final-salary scheme
The maximum amount of pension you could get is based on two things:

1. Your salary at or near the time you retire
and
2. How long you have been in the company pension scheme.

Generally to get the maximum two-thirds of your final salary, you need to have worked for your employer for 40 years, although few people manage that today. When you retire, you can choose whether to take a tax-free cash lump sum of up to one-and-a-half times your income at your retirement date. However, this will result in a lower pension.