AI agents for business finance: what they can and can't do
What AI agents can do in bookkeeping, close, collections and compliance today, where a person must stay in charge, and how to judge a product.
The short answer
At your first job, open one Retirement Savings Account (RSA) with a licensed PFA you choose, give your PIN to HR, and check from your first payslip that at least 8% is deducted and that your PFA receives that plus your employer's 10% within weeks. PenCom's 2023 FAQ says employers must remit within seven working days of paying salary, and if you do not open an RSA within six months your employer may open a nominal one for you.
Why the first job matters most
Money paid into a pension at 23 has around four decades to grow; money paid at 50 has ten years. That is why the habits you set at your first job, after NYSC or straight from school, matter more than any later decision. Getting the set-up right also saves you from problems that are hard to fix years later, such as a second RSA or months that were never remitted.
During NYSC
The PenCom pages we read do not address whether a corps member counts as an employee under the Contributory Pension Scheme. The practical question is whether you are on an employer's payroll as staff. If your place of primary assignment pays you a stipend, ask its HR team in writing whether pension is deducted and, if so, which PFA receives it; if the answer is yes, the steps below apply. If you are retained as staff after service, the six-month clock for opening an RSA runs from your employment date, so use your last weeks of service to choose a PFA and gather your documents.
Step 1: one RSA, chosen by you
- Check whether you already have an RSA from an internship or a previous short job. If you do, use it; only one RSA is allowed per person, the micro pension FAQ notes.
- If not, choose a PFA from PenCom's list (see licensed PFAs). Do not simply accept the one an HR officer suggests without comparing.
- Register with the documents PenCom's 2023 FAQ lists: the PFA's form, your letter of employment, a valid ID and evidence of your NIN. The full process is in how to open an RSA.
PwC's summary of the PRA 2014 says that if you have not opened an RSA within six months of starting, your employer may ask a PFA to open a nominal RSA for you. That keeps contributions flowing, but the PFA is then chosen for you.
Step 2: get the payslip right
Under the PRA 2014, as PwC summarises it, the employer pays at least 10% and you pay at least 8% of your monthly emoluments, which must be no less than basic salary plus housing and transport allowances.
Worked example
Example only. Your offer letter gives ₦150,000 basic, ₦50,000 housing and ₦25,000 transport: ₦225,000 a month. Your payslip should show at least ₦18,000 deducted for pension. Your PFA should receive at least ₦40,500 a month: ₦18,000 from you and ₦22,500 from your employer. Over your first year that is ₦486,000, before any returns.
If the deduction is only 8% of ₦150,000 (₦12,000), the base is too low. Ask HR politely why housing and transport are left out. A gap of ₦6,000 a month from you, plus ₦7,500 a month less from your employer, adds up to ₦162,000 less in your RSA in the first year alone.
Step 3: check remittance every quarter
- Download your RSA statement from your PFA's app.
- Match each month on your payslips to a credit on the statement.
- Check both shares arrived, not only yours.
- If a month is missing after a few weeks, ask HR for the remittance schedule, then your PFA.
- If the employer has not remitted, PenCom's FAQ says you can complain to PenCom directly and confidentially; see how to complain to PenCom.
Other things to set up in month one
- Next of kin: name them on your RSA record and keep it current; see updating next of kin.
- Contact details: make sure the phone and email on your RSA record are yours, so statements and alerts reach you.
- Fund: note which fund you are placed in.
- NHF: if you work in the private sector, NHF contribution is voluntary since the 2023 amendment summarised by Templars; ask HR whether they deduct it and decide whether you want it. See the NHF explained.
- Tax: your 8% is deducted before PAYE under the Nigeria Tax Act 2025, according to a November 2025 Mondaq summary, so it reduces your taxable pay.
When you change jobs
Give your new employer the same PIN; do not open a new RSA. Check that the last month at the old job and the first at the new one both appear on your statement. If you leave work before 50 and cannot find a new job within four months, PwC's summary says you may withdraw up to 25% of your RSA, but that money then stops growing for retirement.
Where Pryme fits
A pension covers retirement, not next year's rent. Many first-jobbers set up a second habit beside the RSA: a fixed sum moved on payday into a Pryme Naira Savings Box, with the Personal Assistant preparing the transfer for you to approve.
Questions people ask
Do corps members contribute to pension?
PenCom's pages we read do not address it. What matters is whether you are on an employer's payroll as staff; ask your PPA's HR in writing whether pension is deducted.
What should I do about pension at my first job?
Open one RSA with a PFA you choose, give your PIN to HR, check the payslip deducts at least 8% of basic, housing and transport, and confirm remittance on your statement.
How do I know my employer is remitting my pension?
Only your PFA statement shows it. Match each payslip month to a credit with both employer and employee shares.
Do I need a new RSA when I change jobs?
No. Give the new employer your existing PIN.
Sources
- PenCom, Frequently Asked Questions (2023 edition) · accessed Oct 2026
- PwC Nigeria, Tax Bites: Pension Reform Act 2014 (July 2014) · accessed Oct 2026
- PenCom, Micro Pension Frequently Asked Questions and Answers · accessed Oct 2026
- Templars, Amendment of the National Housing Fund Act and contribution into the NHF (Apr 2023) · accessed Oct 2026
- Mondaq (S.P.A. Ajibade & Co.), Understanding the taxation of income of employees under the tax reform Acts (10 Nov 2025) · accessed Oct 2026
This article is general information, not financial, legal or tax advice. Products described are provided under the terms on this site and are subject to regulation and eligibility.