As of 13 August 2026, AI can only partly set up workplace pension auto-enrolment.

What to actually do

1. Hand it to a person

   The route this page recommends

   Someone with a licence or accountable authority has to sign this before it counts.

2. Use a tool built for this

   Second choice

3. Do it yourself

   The distant third

   A chat interface, chat-fluent skill, and roughly 1 hour until you can act on the result.

   How to actually do it

   1. Open The Pensions Regulator and GOV.UK guidance, your payroll software instructions and your pension provider's employer setup instructions.
   2. Gather the employer's PAYE details, payroll frequency, worker categories, pay information, existing scheme details and any correspondence or deadlines, removing unnecessary personal identifiers.
   3. Paste the gathered information and the linked guidance extracts into the prompt, asking the model to mark anything missing as UNKNOWN.
   4. Use the model's field-mapping table to identify which settings belong in the payroll system, pension-provider portal and employer records, without letting it enter or alter any account.
   5. Enter the confirmed settings manually in the payroll and pension-provider systems, then run a test payroll and compare worker assessment, deductions, employer contributions and data transfers with both providers' instructions.
   6. Ask the payroll provider and pension provider to confirm the test results and resolve any mismatch before the first live pay run.
   7. Prepare the required worker communications and employer records, then complete any employer declaration or notification required by The Pensions Regulator using the current official instructions.
   8. Send an uncertain or serious case to a qualified payroll or pensions professional, because this is not professional advice.

   Prompt

   Help me plan the setup of UK workplace pension auto-enrolment for this employer. Do not access accounts, invent facts, assume a pension scheme is suitable, or present your answer as legal, payroll or pensions advice. State clearly where I must confirm information with The Pensions Regulator, GOV.UK, my payroll provider or my pension provider.
   
   Employer details:
   - Business type: [business type]
   - Number of workers: [number]
   - PAYE scheme details available: [yes/no]
   - Existing payroll software: [name]
   - Existing pension scheme or provider: [name or none]
   - Employer's relevant dates and correspondence: [paste details]
   
   Worker information available:
   - Worker categories and ages: [paste anonymised summary]
   - Earnings and pay frequencies: [paste anonymised summary]
   - Existing pension memberships or opt-outs: [paste anonymised summary]
   
   Produce:
   1. A source-based checklist of the information and documents I must confirm.
   2. A table mapping each required setting to the system where it must be entered, such as payroll software, pension provider or The Pensions Regulator.
   3. Questions that determine which workers need assessment, without deciding uncertain cases for me.
   4. A step-by-step setup and payroll test plan, including what to check before the first live pay run.
   5. A list of worker communications and employer records to prepare.
   6. A final list of actions that require confirmation by the employer, payroll provider, pension provider or a qualified payroll or pensions professional.
   Use only the information I provide and current guidance I paste into the chat. Mark every unknown as UNKNOWN and do not create contribution figures, dates, worker classifications or compliance confirmations. This is not professional advice.

   Open it prefilled in ChatGPT or Claude, or copy it into Gemini, which takes no prefill link.