On 10 June 2025, the Pension Fund Clearing Obligation Exemption (Amendment) Regulations 2025 were made together with an explanatory memorandum.

These Regulations come into force on 11 June 2025.

These Regulations relate to the temporary exemption which pension scheme arrangements, or ‘pension funds’, currently have from the obligation to clear certain derivative contracts through a central counterparty. This obligation is known as the ‘clearing obligation’. The Regulations establish this exemption on an indefinite basis. It does this by removing the current expiry date of 18 June 2025. It also removes the ability for HM Treasury to extend the exemption by up to two years at a time, as this will no longer be necessary when the exemption has no expiry date. This means that pension funds based in the UK and the European Economic Area will continue to be exempt from the UK clearing obligation.