Pulaski

A personal pension account is a tax-advantaged product, which is capped and restricted, so your lack of a Canadian social security number may cause a problem. I doubt you can just request one if you aren't living in Canada, and I have no idea whether Canada issues ITINs as the US does, nor any idea whether such a "Canadian ITIN" (if it exists) would allow you to transfer a personal pension to a Canadian account.

nun

What are you trying to achieve by trying to transfer your pension?

powersmurf

I want the money now so I can do something better with it like invest it into property etc as over here (in the US) it is a good time to buy.

With the new regulations coming into play with Police pensions I am now I have to wait till I am 65 till I can get it....2 things with this:

1 - I might be dead by the time I am 65
2 - It would not surprise me if in a few years the government turn around and say 'oh very sorry, we have no more money to pay your pension but thanks for putting in for 6 years'.

....and its the second I am more worried about over the first!!!

scrubbedexpat099

I think you mean like rather than need.

(so would I)

nun

I assume you are talking about a QROP transfer. Obvioulsy you can't QROP to the USA. It just isn't possible!!!!!!!!. You might be able to do a QROP to another country like Malta, but then you'd have to deal with the US tax on distributions from a QROP in Malta. Also the costs of QROPs make them a bad option in most circumstances. I would certainly never cash a defined benefit pension plan to invest in real estate. I'd advise you leave the police pension where it is and at age 65 start taking nice checks.

powersmurf

and what happens if I die at the age of 55? or what happens if the UK gov turn around the day before I turn 65 and say they have no more money to pay pensions?

nun

If you die at 55 you won't have to worry about the pension. If the Government changes your pension payout you'll have the solice of being in the company of many others, but the worst cutbacks are usually reserved for the young so the longer you live the more likely that you'll get your full pension.

Pension money should be kept for use in retirement. If you tap it early you will definitely get a lower payment and will be exchanging the risk of Government cutbacks for the risk of the stock market or real estate, or for the risk that you run out of money well before you die. Doing a QROP will probably cost you 25k GBP and there will be the ongoing fees of the investment funds as well as the uncertaity of dealing with US and local taxation of the QROP.

Giantaxe

Yeh, this sounds crazy. I'd almost kill for a defined-benefit pension.

Pulaski

If the UK has reached the point where it defaults on pension obligations, the economy of the western world would likely be so shaky that your planned investments in real estate would be in ruins too. Diversification is the name of the game, and your best friend in uncertain times, and I would love to have a defined benefit pension in my portfolio of investments!

TimandRae

Almost?

sir_eccles

As my financial adviser said when we set up our kid's college fund, "don't forget to save for retirement, there are no scholarships available for retirement".

RugbySpecial

The really frustrating thing is that my UK pension is frozen till I'm 55 with no right to make any further contributions, so the ability for that fund to grow and work for me is almost non-existent; I'm not looking to cash out early! I would have thought that the IRS would have welcomed people bringing additional money in to the US system.

Pulaski

If it's frozen in the UK that's not the IRS's fault. And the ability to cash out a 401k is contrary to everything the British pension system stands for, and I don't see how anyone will ever be permitted to move a British pension into any sort of investment that permits premature withdrawals. IMO, the US would do well to follow suit, protecting it's citizens from themselves and reducing the number of people reliant on supplemental income from tax revenues.

Anyhow, your pension funds in the UK should be working just fine for you. The snowball effect works the same whether you have $1,000 or $1,000,000, if the market rises by 10% you'll get 10% on your investments (assuming they are perfectly correlated with the market).

RugbySpecial

It's not the IRS' fault that my UK fund is frozen, that wasn't implied. Also because the HMRC doesn't allow continuing contributions from ex-pats the snowball effect off the market can't be fully capitalized upon. It just seems to me that it's part of the tax treaty that wasn't given proper consideration.

nun

It has nothing to do with the treaty, it's just HMRC or IRS rules. As an example a US expat can continue to contribute to an IRA if they have earned income on a 1040. If you are a UK expat make sure you continue with voluntary NI payments and contribute to a appropriate pension plans in your current employment.

The big problem with UK pension plans are the ridiculous expenses and poor returns to the investor.