There is currently no minimum contribution for the NFU Mutual Stakeholder Pension Plan, monthly or single premium. But the UK Government does specify a maximum contribution that you can pay, or that can be paid on your behalf, of £50,000 or your earnings if lower, into one or more pension schemes in any tax year.  This includes any premiums payable for life assurance under a pension plan.

The vast majority of individuals can contribute up to £3,600 gross (including tax relief) each tax year into their pension arrangements without any restrictions. A full explanation of this can be found in the Stakeholder Pension Plan Key Features Document.

If you have net relevant earnings (NRE - which are all earnings subject to UK income tax less certain expenses), the maximum gross contribution you can make into a plan is the lower of £50,000 and your net relevant earnings for the year.

In certain circumstances you may be able to contribute more than £50,000 in one year, and receive tax relief on your contribution, by taking advantage of the new 'carry-forward' rules. These new rules allow you to carry forward your unused annual allowance from the previous three tax years (up to a maximum of £50,000 for each of the previous years) as long as you have been a member of a registered pension scheme for those three years and have sufficient earnings in the year that you make the contribution.

You should remember that the value of a stakeholder investment can go down as well as up, so you may not get back what you invested. In addition, inflation could erode the value of your pension fund in the future, so it's important to review your pension provision on a regular basis to ensure your contributions will be enough to help you live the retirement you want.

The tax treatment of pensions depends on individual circumstances and may change in the future.

For all new Stakeholder Pensions opened after 6th April 2005, there will be an annual management charge of only 1.5% of the value of the funds you accumulate for the first 10 years of the plan. Thereafter the charge is reduced to only 1% per annum.

Plans taken out before this date are subject to an annual management charge of only 1% throughout the lifetime of the plan.

And that's not all - NFU Mutual recognise the importance of retirement planning and so, for larger funds, NFU Mutual will rebate part of the fund management charge each month based on your fund size. Details about this rebate can be found in the Stakeholder Pension Plan Key Features Document.

There is a choice of eight investment funds within the Stakeholder Pension Plan. You can choose to invest in one or more of these to tailor your plan to suit your own personal investment attitude and objectives. The different funds available are listed in the 'frequently asked questions' section.

All funds are managed by our investment management team, who aim to achieve the best possible returns for investors over the long-term rather than focusing on short-term gains. You should remember that past performance is not a guide to the future.