PerthGooner

I am a dual national so coming and going is not an issue. I lived in Aus from 97-99 on a working visa and then 2004 to 2010 getting citizenship during that visit.

I’m due to retire in a few years and the plan is to retire to Australia.

I may come out permanently or, since I have children in both countries I may choose to split my time.

I’d love to get in touch with anyone who is doing split living to n understand the financial implications of doing this especially anyone who’s figured out whether it’s better to transfer pensions or draw them in each country etc

I’d also like to get in touch with anyone who spent a few years in Aus and who transferred a Uk pension over and then later returned back to the UK for a number of years .(like me) as I’d like to understand what happens if I go back and transfer newer pensions over.

finally if you have used a professional to get these answers that you could recommend then that would be good

many thanks

PerthGooner

spouse of scouse

Hi and welcome to BE.

I think your idea of getting professional advice is a good one, as you may not qualify to receive an Australian Age Pension.

The qualifying criteria has an Australian residence rule, which is the requirement to have been an Australian citizen or permanent resident for at least 10 years, with at least 5 of those years being consecutive. The rules are a bit different for some people from New Zealand, and for people who have lived in a country that has a Social Security Agreement with Australia, but neither of those apply to you. If your working visa between 1997 - 1999 was a permanent resident visa, you might scrape up 10 years depending on the exact number of months you were a permanent resident and citizen.

Just to be clear, the UK State pension is (currently) a guaranteed payment, based on your NI contributions.
An Australian age pension is a welfare payment, with income, assets and Australian residency rules.

I hope that helps a bit, best of luck.