You are obliged to assess your whole staff for whether they are eligible for auto-enrolment, but you may not have to automatically enrol all of them.
| Age | Age | Age | |
| Monthly Earnings | From 16 to 22 | From 22 to State Pension Age (SPA) | From State Pension Age (SPA) to 74 |
£481 and below: | Has the right to join pension scheme. | Has right to join pension scheme. | Has the right to join pension scheme. |
Over £481 up to £833: | Has a right to opt in. | Has a right to opt in. | Has a right to opt in. |
Over £833: | Has a right to opt in. | Automatically enrolled. | Has a right to opt in. |
What's the difference between joining and opting in? Simply, opting in means the employee has the right to join your auto-enrolment pension scheme, whereas as joining means they have the right to join a scheme, not necessarily the one you use for auto-enrolment.
It's against the law to try and affect your employees decision to opt in or out. Examples of this would include offering cash bonuses for opting out, or withholding pay.