Members

Members of the GEPF are allowed to increase their pensionable service by purchasing additional service. Members have to apply for this and, if the GEPF approves their application for the Purchase of Service, they must pay the approved amount with interest. The Fund recovers these payments through a monthly instalment deduction or once-off payment. These amounts are collected by their employer and are paid directly to GEPF.

When collecting Purchase of Service instalments, the GEPF uses the following process: 

1.  Raising the amounts payable by the member: Upon approval of the quotation by GEPF, a debt would automatically be raised on the system. Normally members are given a three-month period before instalments are deducted. Every month, an automated run is done to raise instalments from the capital amount and add interest (as per the GEPF quotation).

2.  Deducting the instalments due: The runs takes place on the last weekend of the month.

3.   Persal/Persol deduction: On a monthly basis, the employer would deduct the Purchase of Service instalment against the member’s salary and pay it over to the GEPF. 

4.   Reconciliation: The amount deducted from the member’s debt as an instalment is set off against the amount deducted from the member’s salary as reflected on Persal/Persol.

5.   Following up on discrepancies: The reconciliation is performed to identify defaulting members. When adjustments have to be made, letters are sent to members.

6.   Reporting on the results: A monthly status (debts record) report is submitted to GEPF management.

Employers

Each month, the employer deducts the Purchase of Service instalment against the member’s salary and pays it over to the GEPF.   

Employers are required to pay the monthly deductions over to the GEPF by the seventh day of the following month. The Fund has a clearly defined process for receiving, reconciling and reporting on the Purchase of Service payments, as follows:  

1. The collection process consists of the following steps: Raising the amounts payable by the employer: This information comes from the monthly salary information obtained from Persal/ Persol. The information is available by the third week of every month for the month concerned.
   
2. Allocating receipts: The GEPF captures and allocates receipts for payments to the debtor accounts daily; however, to finalise this process for a specific month the receipts must be captured and allocated by the 10^th of the next month to the relevant Purchase of Service suspense account, in preparation for reconciliation.
   
3. Reconciliation: One month in arrears, reconciliation is performed to reconcile payable instalment and amount allocated.
   
4. Following up on discrepancies: This step is aimed at correcting overpayments and underpayments. If the payment was late, it is followed up in terms of the GEPF Debt Collection Policy.
   
5. Raising late payment interest: On a monthly basis, the GEPF calculates late payment interest (based on the Repo rate+ 3%).

Reporting on the results: A monthly status report on amounts payable and owing is submitted to GEPF management and the Benefits and Administration Committee (BA-C) of the Board of Trustees.