AJ100

could anyone recommend the best way to transfer my company pension to a private pension company in Perth, and whether to do this before i leave the UK.
thanks
Andy

wongstonn

Far from an expert on this matter, but I think you can do this once you have a job in Oz. One relatively simple way of doing this would be to ask your UK pension fund provider to provide you with pension transfer forms, then give them to your chosen superannuation company to continue processing.

Neil

JAJ

If it's a final salary scheme you should first think about the pros and cons of doing the transfer in the first place.

It may still be the right option, or it may not. Depends on your circumstances.

Jeremy

Alan Collett

Andy,

I'd only say that you should make sure you know why you are transferring your UK pension fund to Australia, and that you are comfortable with the recipient super fund into which your monies might be transferred.

If you're not sure, it is probably time to take some professional advice - possibly now, and almost certainly when you reach Australia.

Best regards.

AJ100

Alan
thanks for the information i thought it would be better transfering than leaving in the UK? As yet i am not sure as to continue in the same profession when in Perth so thinking of putting pension fund into private fund as may move jobs until i found the right one, and did not want to transfer pension monies again, i will seek professional advice
thanks
andy

Tony Mullaney

My job is to help Uk Ex-pats to transfer there company and personal pensions when they move to US and Canada unfortunately I do not deal with OZ or NZ, But I know a little firstly you need to transfer all pensions within 6 months , I would suggest you get started sooner rather than later as it can take some time.
2 more importantly I read on this forum recently "last two week or so " of a guy in OZ how does this and was offering his services, if you were to look in the old postings to do with pensions you should find it....... Do not however, not transfer it, as a frozen pension in the UK will not make you any money, the government now says you are to get 5% or RPI (retail price index) which ever the LESSER currently 1.5 - 1.8 % per year in interest, pretty bad I think.

Hope this helps if not drop me a line and I will find someone for you.

<<email address removed for privacy - PM user for contact details>>
Did you leave a pension in the UK ?

GinaUK

That is not correct.

If your pension is a money purchase scheme and invested in some kind of unitised fund(s), then the units will increase/decrease in value over the years as the value of the underlying shares increases/decreases until you reach retirement age. Nobody can predict how much this will be. As everyone knows, shares can go up as well as down. Historically, over longer periods, they've gone more up than down.

If your pension is a final salary scheme, then the annual increase, prescribed by the government and usually effective each April, reflects the change in the Retail Prices Index over the 12 months up to the previous September. Depending on your scheme's rules, you may get a higher increase. In addition, when a person retires, many final salary schemes pay out built-in annual increases of between 3-5% (well worth having and expensive to "buy" with a money puirchase scheme), and may have widows' and orphans' pensions built-in as well.

Please don't make any hasty decisions as to what to do with your pension. Get advice from someone who is appropriately registered. In the meantime, you may want to ask for a full copy of the scheme rules from your company pension scheme trustees (contact your company's human resources/personnel department in the first instance).

Gina

AJ100

Gina

Thanks for the info,
will contact my company pension department for advice on transfer or to keep in uk
andy

Tony Mullaney

Andy

In light of the Email's you have had on this matter I would strongly suggest you go take real advice, utilising you HR department Bank and IFO if you can make contact with some one in OZ do so.

Be aware the laws are changing in the UK in April, Asking this Question could help you determine if the person you are talking to knows what they are talking about, "how will the new laws affect me ? "

The information I provided earlier is only a guide line, in most cases most of my clients have totally different occupational pension schemes from one another. Final salary schemes can and do freeze just as many more do.

Wol

Bear in mind that some of a final salary pension may well be frozen; ie. not uplifted with inflation, if you emigrate to Oz or NZ.

JAJ

The keywords are *some* and *may*. Not 'all' and 'will.



The lack of indexation on state pensions does not extend to private or company pensions (except perhaps the Guaranteed Minimum Pension component, if it applies).



Jeremy

Wol

Of course. The other keywords are "Oz" and "NZ" (Amongst others!)

However, the part non-indexed can amount to quite a substantial sum, and it's not well known. It certainly wasn't known to me when I came out - and I keep fairly au fait with my pension.

(And, again of course, if you are the recipient of a pension as a civil servant, judge or MP you can ignore the above.)

JAJ

At the same time it's important to keep things in perspective as otherwise people will read messages like this and assume all their UK pensions will be frozen - definitely not true!



Jeremy

Wol

I take your point but I did choose my words quite carefully. Like in the Rules of Golf, each word means what it says!

kirsty&al

We obviously speak the same version of English. I think your point was very clear.

A