The National Pension Commission, PenCom said that recoveries from employers that default in remitting pension contributions of their employees, rose by 503.7 per cent to N972.12 million in Q1’25 from N161.03 million recovered in Q4’24.

The Commission also disclosed that the defaulting employers coughed out N381.88 million as penalties for default in Q1’25. This represents a 54.6 per cent increase from N246.94 million paid as penalties in Q4’24.

The Pension Fund Operators Association of Nigeria, PenOp, made the disclosure in the report on recovery of outstanding pension contributions and penalties from defaulting employers.

Further review of the report shows that in Q3’ 24, N106.87 million was recovered from defaulting employers while penalties of N165.63 million were paid as penalties.

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In Q2’24, N125.57 was recovered from defaulting employers while N210.68 was paid as penalties. In Q1’24, N751.51 million was recovered from defaulting employers while N1.44 billion was paid as penalties.

Commenting on the report, PenOp stated: “Over the last five quarters (Q1’2024-Q1’2025), PenCom’s enforcement has delivered steady recoveries from defaulting employers. The highest total recovery occurred in Q1 2024, when N751.51 million in outstanding contributions and N1.44 billion in penalties were recouped. Activity dipped through mid-2024, ticked up in Q4, and then rebounded strongly in Q1 2025 with N972.12 million in contributions and N381.88 million in penalties recovered from 19 employers. That mix matters.While Q1 2025 wasn’t the highest quarter overall, it posted the strongest principal (contribution) recovery of the period and the highest average haul per employer about N71 million versus roughly N63 million in Q1 2024 suggesting larger, more material cases were tackled even as the number of defaulters fell.

“Across the five quarters, recoveries summed to about N2.12 billion in contributions and N2.45 billion in penalties from 138 defaulting employers, evidence that enforcement continues to safeguard workers’ retirement savings.

“The pattern also highlights what’s next: move from episodic crackdowns to durable prevention by tightening real-time remittance monitoring, escalating sanctions for chronic defaulters, and deepening employer education to reduce repeat offenses. The goal isn’t just big recovery headlines; its fewer defaults, faster remittances, and a stronger, more predictable Contributory Pension Scheme.

“It is vital that workers know their rights. All employers engaging three or more staff are required by law to remit pensions on behalf of their employees.