SIPP and SSAS provider professional body the Association of Member-Directed Pension Schemes has expressed “strong opposition” to the DWPs consultation on the general levy for pension schemes.

The proposal from the DWP aims to increase the levy rates for schemes with less than 10,000 members by an additional £10,000 from 2026.

The AMPS said this would be unfair and disproportionate to the small schemes sector and would discourage the use of SSAS as a flexible and cost-effective pension vehicle for business owners and entrepreneurs.

Andrew Phipps, chair of AMPS, said: “We are deeply concerned about the DWP’s proposals to increase the General Levy for small schemes, which we believe are unjustified and detrimental to the SSAS market. We urge the DWP to reconsider its approach and to engage with the industry to find a more reasonable and sustainable solution.”

AMPS has over 120 member firms representing all parts of the industry: SIPP providers, SSAS practitioners, pension lawyers, software developers, banks and investment houses.

At its AGM the provider body also added Kevin Whitmore of WBR Group to its committee of nine representatives from across the industry.

In a recent column for sister title SIPPs Professional, Lisa Webster, senior technical consultant at AJ Bell called on Financial Planners, SIPP and SSAS professionals to voice their concerns to the DWP levy review, saying that the increase in the levy could be a death knoll for SSAS schemes.

SSAS expert Martin Tilley rebuffed the idea that the recently proposed increase to the DWP pensions levy may kill of the SSAS market.

He however, said that it “seems incomprehensible that a one-off levy of this size should be imposed on schemes, by their size of membership and asset value least able to afford it.”