Hi Cornish,

What I have been advised is how this gain is calculated, ie cash value in dollars on the day you become tax resident and then again when you move the money over if its more than 6 months. If the fund gains value because the dollar has gone down, the tax bill could be thousands of dollars, depending on the size of the fund. Having thought about this, I am likely to move it in the 6 months, especially if there is a uk election in this time and the pound starts to recover a bit. However not finally decided yet.

Scotty

You are probably better off leaving it where it is but before making a decision, why not ask a UK Pensions Options Specialist? Let me know if you need a contact

hi there wur abouts in NI u all from, we are from lisburn, and loking to move to OZ next year.

and we also dont know what to do with the pensions we have when we move !!

we are in the same situation, my wife is a nurse and has the superann pension, and has paid it for about 12 years, adn i have a private one, but its all a big tangle to find out clearly what to do with them,!!

Bangor but lived in Newtownards before moving to Australia. We're now on the Sunshine Coast, love it here Where are you thinking of going?

Lynn xx

we havent decided yet were, still weighing up each city. they all have pro's and cons its a nightmare lol.

prob between. brisbane, melbourne, perth or gold coast. tell me about where u live ( gold coast). is it good for kids, schools, shops, parks, jobs etc etc.

thanks

chris

I too am a nurse with 12 years pension. There is the QROPS you can transfer it too. But you can't access any funds for 5 years. You need to living out of the country for these 5 years. To be able to access these funds then, in 5 years I think you need to be at pensionable age. Have a look at www.qrops.co.uk
It is tax free on this lump sum. But I have been advised to stay put with my pension and keep paying into it for now. It's not worth that much anyway as a final pension lump sum, which is your whole pension fund for the rest of your living days. My recent statement from NHS penions for 12 years service amounts to around £ 62,000.
Best to seek finacial advice on this one.

Good luck. x

Hi,

I am in the process of transferring my pension to oz at the moment.

I am using cobens pensions services. You dont pay them directly but they get commission or something.

After you have lived in Australia for 6 months you have to pay tax on your pension, so i decided it was best for me to move my pension over to join with my superannuation. The UK team locate your pension/s in the uk and then put you in touch with a financial advisor in Australia as well to talk about which superannuation fund is best for your pension.

You could always email them for advice. They are incredibly helpful and tell you the pros and cons of moving your pension or leaving it where it is.

Hope that helps.

Taryn

Hi all.

There can be many advantages of transferring over a UK Pension but in some cases it may not be right.

In relation to the 6 month rule, this is really only a small factor in deciding.

One of the biggest factors should be intention to remain in Australia as once the Pension is transferred here it cannot be transferred back until such time as a condition of release is met ie retirement.

The 6 month rule is generally used as a scaremongering tactic by companies on the UK side to try and secure business before you leave.

Also if you do use them once the funds are in Australia they put you in touch with an Australia Adviser to invest and build you an investment portfolio, this of course all means an additional expense. BTW when they say that they do not charge you and are paid a commission from the Super fund this is a direct charge to you as it comes directly from your Pension monies on transfer.

There are plently of Adviers in Australia that deal with Pension transfers and by doing this you can deal with one Adviser for the whole process which in turn SHOULD cut costs.

It is advisable to deal with one that has knowledge on UK Pensions as they can differ so much and that way you know that you are dealing with an Adviser that is familiar with your product.

Just in relation to the 6 month rule, if tax is due as their has been fund growth etc etc, this can be mitigated down to 15%.

However Superannuation in Australia is taxed on the growth/earnings of the fund at between 10% - 15% anyway. Therefore is the 6 month rule as important as companies make out?


Please note this is just general information and not specific advice. (Apologies but this has to be said).



Regards

Andy Williams

Thanks for the information. As i am going through this as well its good to know all everything.......and not just what the companies want me to know.

l guess unless you have been to those places its very hard to decide. Maybe go where you get the best job offer or best pay then you could always move to another part of OZ later on.