Di Di

Hi
Wondering if somebody could give me the benefit of their experience?

I am 70 years old and thinking of moving back to the UK. I would be living in the UK on an Australian aged pension. I am concerned about the drop in Aussie dollar to the pound and think it may go a bit lower still in the next year or so. I judge basic living costs in Australia to be higher than living in the UK (I have visited my home town fairly consistently over the years but not for the last ten years so am out of date). I believe I can be fairly comfortable living on my Aussie pension. However, I am not sure what the UK pension is and how often it increases in order to compare the Aussie pension with the UK one.

So what I'd like to know if there is anybody out there who has followed this route:

How much is the average single pension in the UK?
Do they know whether I would be able to get Council asistance for various living costs associated with purchasing a retirement flat? I may not be eligible due to not receiving the UK pension.
Has anybody moved back with an Aussie pension that could share their experiences, financially?

Thanks very much. I don't expect there to be many oldie poldies like me making the trip back but still there might be!!!

Cheers
Di

Pollyana

Have you paid in to the UK National Insurance scheme - did you ever work in the UK and if so, for how long? That can affect the amount of pension you would get.

Di Di

Thanks for taking the trouble to reply, P. I worked only up to the age of 21 and then emigrated to Australia so I don't qualify. Although I have worked sporadically in the Uk since, it doesnt make me eligible for the UK pension (I have enquired into it).

I am able to take my Aussie pension over to UK as I have been a resident here for over 35 years (that's the requirement here) but when you reduce the current rate to sterling, the amount comes down, of course, as the A dollar is coming down against the sterling, plus I wondered if I could ALSO be eligible for certain financial help from local councils if I am not on UK pension but on a foreign pension such as Council Tax etc. UK pensioners do get help with that if they need it.

So, bottom line, I want to go back but will my Oz pension be enough to support me? I am quite happy with the Aussie pension but just want to make sure I have enough to live on so am looking for some comparisons.

Yes, I can write to the UK to find out thru official channels but it's the long way around and I thought there just might be somebody on here that has done something similar to what I want to do.

Cheers, and thanks again, Pollyanna.
Di

mikelincs

Once living here you would be able to claim housing benefit and council tax benefit, not sure if there is a qualifying period though, when we moved back in 2009 we could claim them from day 1, but things might well have changed. There is no help for house buying, and at your age you would not qualify for a mortgage, housing benefit is only available against rental costs. You would also get a council tax reduction of 25% if you are in single occupancy.
Housing and council tax benefit are means tested. In the UK if a pension is low, then people can apply for pension credit, however I'm not sure whether it would apply to someone with a pension from outside the UK.

old.sparkles

Ageuk has some info - Retiring abroad - returning to the UK | Home and Care | Age UK

and also a factsheet - http://www.ageuk.org.uk/Documents/EN...n-GB?dtrk=true

Might be a good place to start

quiltman

Di,
are you still a UK citizen? If so then there's no problem moving back but you would not be eligible for things like NHS for at least 3 months.
If you are a UK citizen , then after a qualifying period, you should be eligible for certain benefits such as 25% off council tax, plus some other, income related ones. The criteria is income , not generally where it comes from.

If you are NOT a UK citizen then it gets much harder as first you would need a visa to settle in UK and would not be allowed to claim any benefits , plus you'd have to pay for health care.
i hope someone who has done the same can be of more help , but usually it's folk moving the other way - UK to Aus - who ask pension questions!

michali

Actually she would be entitled to NHS treatment from day one upon her return. Some hospitals might charge for inpatient care in the first year but many don't. As to pension, it is still worth applying. I get a small one based on contributions I made and it was a surprise to me. I cannot assist with the other issues I am afraid. I came back at 69 with my nonEU husband.

the1mag

I moved back three months ago at the age of 67 after 44 years in Canada following my husband's death last year.

I had worked for a few years before I left and was able to get a 30% UK pension based on those contributions so it's definitely worth inquiring from here https://www.gov.uk/international-pension-centre. I didn't have my National Inisurance number and was able to get it from here https://www.gov.uk/lost-national-insurance-number.

My only income is my Canadian pension and that small UK amount, and once my small nestegg gets below 16000 pounds I will be able to apply for housing benefit to help with my rent.

The Canadian dollar is pretty weak against the pound at the moment so I monitor the exchange rate carefully to make sure I'm not losing too much when I transfer funds over.

There's something called the Habitual Residency Test that you have to go through when applying for any benefit (housing, job seekers etc) and it's really about satisfying them that you do actually intend to stay in the UK. In my case it won't be an issue because I brought everything I wanted to keep, my family is here, and I meet all the indicators including having brought my cat with me! There's more about that here Citizens Advice - What is the habitual residence test?

As has been mentioned in other threads, finding somewhere to live and the costs involved with that can be a issue and having my sister to help with that was a real plus. I found a flat in the town where I wanted to live but am also on the waiting lists for a few sheltered buildings for seniors and there's information about that here Retirement homes and sheltered housing in the UK. When you're searching it helps if you have an idea of what area you want to be in so you can narrow the search.

I am not able to get council housing here because you have to have local ties to be eligible which I don't.

Hope all that helps but I'd be happy to answer any specific questions.

dunroving

Slightly off-topic (maybe not), but what assistance would be available to a UKC who landed back in the UK with literally no money and nowhere to live?

What about someone who arrives back with some money but can't find accommodation or as in another thread, can't afford the high deposits and security charges? Or can't persuade a landlord or agent to take them on as a tenant?

the1mag

Addendum to my post:

I found a place on www.airbnb.com in the area I was interested in for the first month I was back and found my flat during that time.

Thanks to another post on here, I looked at SPARE ROOM for flatshare, house share, flat share & rooms for rent and gumtree for rooms and flats let directly by the landlord and actually found a few I was interested in but the timing didn't work out. That would have let me bypass using an agent and the costs involved.

Editha

That is not correct about the NHS. You would be able to get NHS care from the day you become resident in the UK.

Editha

You'd have to ask for a social services assessment of your needs. No help is guaranteed following an assessment, but if you might be given emergency accommodation (not nice b&b) if assessed as at risk. You'd also get vouchers for a food bank.

the1mag

There's no qualifying period for the 25% off council tax, you get that if you're a single person when you rent or buy.

Di Di

Wow, what a fabulous response. Thanks SO much. Lots of very helpful advice. Yes, I am a UK citizen. I plan to purchase a small flat in Lytham St Annes in Lancs as I know it well. It has to have a tiny garden or I will go mad. There are a few there, fortunately. Good advice from the lady who came from Canada to watch the exchange rates before she moves cash over. I could have my pension put in an account in Sydney and do that, too, or I could have it put directly into an account in UK. After that helpful advice, I will look into that aspect more carefully. Council tax, yes, good, 25% off, I will def apply for that! I do know I can qualify for NHS straight away.

I have a pet, too, and lots of furniture. Ive had quotes about taking the furniture back, even after a brutal cull of some of the big things and it was around $9,000! I nearly died. Also, pets are very expensive to transport from here. So it's going to be a big move for me in lots of ways so whatever I can apply for in the way of savings, I will do so (she said hopefully).

Thanks, members, so much. If anything else occurs to you, please let me know.

Di

the1mag

I got rid of all my furniture and most everything else. It's cheaper to replace it all than ship it. It's been insane living the last few weeks in Canada in reverse, re-acquiring everything, but it's just stuff and unless there's anything you're really attached to I'd think twice about shipping it all.