Chawky

Hey Folks;

I've been reading this board and came across some info re pensions. Some of it was a bit conflicting so...

I served in Uk police for over 23 years and my pension is deferred until I am 60.

I've read that its possible to transfer that to Canada and potentially retire at 50? or at worst 55?

Also, that it seems that the pension values increase. I know I could have retired at 48.5 with 30 years in, (or retired at 25 years ,deferred to 50) but this is quite a boon to be able to receive a pension sooner so long as you remain in Canada?

What's the reason for the increase in pension value? I know there's absolutely nothing I can do with my pension in the UK, but it seems in Canada you can transfer and reinvest it and it grow?

Am I correct in thinking this or can I just not read properly(the latter more like!).

bobhope

well I had 24 yr police pension, transfered it, to an RRSP over here, initially made good returns, credit cruch hit...........ouch! But still its in till I am 55 so loads of time to recoup! 10 years to go! Crikey!!!

Chawky

Hi Bob

Ta for the info.

I presume then that the value can be invested and then it is subject to market conditions, ie goes up or down? Obviously this isn't as safe as the pension back home (well until Mr Brown finds a way to eat it!).

I read somewhere that people were making considerable gain from UK Police Pension when transferring to Canada.

I'm waiting out a short period before I apply over there, but these sort of questions significantly effect big decisions when you aren't a spring chicken and have considerable police service in. Being able to retire at 50/55 when it could have been 60 is kind of huge in reality. I would imagine the Canadian Police is similar to the UK, more of a young persons job when you get beyond a certain age perhaps.

roygifford

I work as a consultant for a financial services company in canada. yes you can transfer your pension and it will depend on which province you are in as to how much of it if any is required to be locked in. with RSPs the thing is that you can invest the money in almost any kind of fund of varying volatility so you have control over how it is done. with the credit crunch, moving your money now would be a very good move as your commutable value of your pension should not have changed but the price you are buying your new funds at is very low so huge gains to be made as the markets return to normal over time.
there are normally no penalties to pay to transfer a UK pension to canada and if you wish i can put you in touch with someone who can help you with the process. i hope some of this is useful to you and feel free to contact me if you need to.

burz

iv just had an email from the alberta pensions people ( covering edmonton/calgary etc) - who say you CANT transfer and have to start all over again.

I assume they are right, but has anyone got direct experience of this? if you have managed a transfer into Alberta how did you do it?

ann m

Hi burz. You cannot transfer your pension into the Special Forces Pension Plan (which is what Edmonton and Calgary Police use), as they do not accept the UK pension pot. So, you would start afresh into their own pension scheme (10.1% of your salary).

If you want to bring over a UK police pension, you need help to do this. The money must be deposited into a specific (safe) place, and the UK will not release the monies unless assured it goes into a qualifying scheme.

The poster above obviously has experience of this though I cannot vouch for him. There are several Financial Advisors that can assist with this, and I understand that even Scotiabank (one of the big four here) are now able to do this for you too.

Hope that helps a bit. Basically, it can be a minefield and you need expert advice!