A Retirement Savings Account, or RSA, is the account in your name that holds your pension. Each month, your employer takes your share from your salary, adds its own share, and sends both to the custodian that holds money for your Pension Fund Administrator (PFA). The PFA invests it until you retire.

The deduction is shown on your payslip. The remittance does not. Many workers find out only when they change jobs or when they retire that money taken from their pay never reached the RSA. By then, the employer may have closed, and the years of growth on that money are gone.

How big is the system?

Nigeria’s pension assets reached ₦31.8 trillion on 31 August 2026, up from ₦28.04 trillion in January, according to PenCom data. There were 11,391,008 RSA holders.

Not all of that money arrived on time. At a PenCom conference for journalists on 14 October, Director-General Omolola Oloworaran called the withholding of deducted contributions a breach of trust and of the law. She said recoveries from defaulting employers had reached ₦36.6 billion as of July 2026. Keep in mind that is only the part PenCom recovered. Nobody knows the full amount that was deducted and never sent.

What should be going in?

Under the Pension Reform Act 2014, the minimum contribution is 18% of your monthly emoluments. Your employer pays at least 10%. You pay at least 8%.

Monthly emoluments are not your total pay. They are at least your basic salary plus your housing and transport allowances. If your salary is not split into those parts, the contribution is based on your gross salary.

Let’s use an example. Tunde is an accountant in Ibadan. His basic salary is ₦250,000 a month, his housing allowance is ₦100,000, and his transport allowance is ₦50,000. His monthly emoluments are ₦400,000.

His 8% is ₦32,000. His employer’s 10% is ₦40,000. Together, ₦72,000 should reach his RSA every month. That is ₦864,000 a year.

The law also sets a deadline. The employer must remit within seven working days of paying salaries. If it is late, it owes a penalty of at least 2% of the unpaid amount for each month the default continues, and that penalty is paid into the employee’s RSA.

What does a missed year cost?

Say Tunde’s employer has a cash problem and stops remitting for 12 months while still deducting his 8%. ₦864,000 never reaches his account.

The loss is bigger than ₦864,000, because that money would have been invested for decades. Tunde is 35. For illustration, assume his fund earns 10% a year until he retires at 60. That rate is an assumption, not a forecast. ₦864,000 growing at 10% a year for 25 years becomes about ₦9.36 million, because 1.10 raised to the 25th power is about 10.83.

One missed year in his thirties costs him roughly ₦9.4 million at retirement. That is why you check now and not at 59.

How to check your RSA

Get your statement. Most PFAs have an app or a web portal, and they also send statements by email. If you have never logged in, call your PFA with your RSA PIN and ask them to set up access.

Line up 12 payslips against the statement. For every month, look for a credit that matches the amount deducted plus the employer’s share. A credit that arrives two months late is a problem too, because the money sat with your employer and earned nothing for you.

Check the amount, not just the date. If your employer calculates 18% on basic salary alone, Tunde’s monthly contribution would be ₦45,000 instead of ₦72,000. Over a year, that is ₦324,000 short, and it looks normal unless you do the sum.

If something is missing, write to HR or payroll first and ask for the remittance schedule for the missing months. Put it in writing. If you get no answer, write to your PFA and ask it to raise the matter with the employer. If that fails, report the employer to PenCom. Keep copies of your payslips. They are your evidence.

Two other things on your statement

Look at which fund you are in. Workers under 50 are in Fund II by default. At 50, you move to Fund III, which holds fewer shares. Workers under 50 can choose Fund I, which can hold more shares, if they want more growth and can live with bigger swings. There is also Fund VI for those who want non-interest investments. Make sure the fund matches your age and your choice.

Then check your personal details. Your name, date of birth, BVN, NIN and next of kin should match your other records exactly. PenCom says it has cut approval times for retirement benefits from as long as 21 months to 48 hours. That speed only helps you if your records are clean. A spelling difference between your RSA and your bank account can still hold up your money.

If your PFA gives poor service, you can move. The law lets you transfer your RSA to another PFA once a year without giving a reason, and PenCom’s transfer process is free.

What to do this month

• Download your RSA statement and line it up against your last 12 payslips.
• Confirm the contribution is 18% of basic housing and transport, not basic alone.
• Write to HR about any missing or short month, and keep the reply.
• Check your fund type and your personal details, and fix any mismatch now.

Your pension is part of your salary. You would notice if your employer paid you ₦72,000 short. Treat a missing remittance the same way.

Education only, not financial advice.

Kalu A. Aja is a Certified Financial Education Instructor and an astute professional with over 27 years of experience spanning capital market operations, treasury, investment, asset management, and occupational pension services. Do follow on X @FinPlanKaluAja1