UK pension payment in the States
 

Dear all,

I wanted to inquire about the ways I can receive pension once I retire in Hawaii. I heard I could get the pension paid directly into my local bank account in the US(once opened).
Could anyone tell me if there is any charge (payment fee) associated with the convenience of direct transfer and what the exchange rate might be.

Thanks!

Re: UK pension payment in the States
 

Perhaps you had better decide where you are retiring to first
France or Italy are your other two choices ...
The US is not available to most for retiring ...

Re: UK pension payment in the States
 

Ray, you are right.I haven't decided yet because have ties in all those countries.
Would you please share your US experience when it comes to pension payments.

Thanks!

Re: UK pension payment in the States
 

When I moved here my pension guy said that it was almost impossible to transfer a UK private pension into a US one but any UK pension can be paid to you regardless of where you live. He did say there would be fees but apparently they change a lot, why don't you go right to the source and ask? I'm sure the government and any other pension provider has some kind of brochure on what to do when you don't live in the UK when you retire.

Re: UK pension payment in the States
 

Duncun,

thanks for your reply. I have already inquired with DWP, however they can't (or won't) tell you the implied exchage rate, except that they are 'competitive'. I was wondering if a person who receives UK state pension can shed some light.

Dejan

Re: UK pension payment in the States
 

Or do what others do ... have it paid into your bank in the UK ..and twice a year transfer it too any country you wish ..
If you need the income on a weekly/monthly basis ..forget moving abroad...
you cannot afford it ....

Re: UK pension payment in the States
 

Thanks, Ray!

Re: UK pension payment in the States
 

I recieve my AOP here direct into my USA bank. There are no fees as there is a reciprocal agreement with the UK. The exchange is based on the international exchange rate and not the tourist rate. I had my pension paid in yesterday and I got $1.7677 to the pound which is within a cent of the international rate. The reason why they cannot give you the rate is because it is constantly changing by the minute and you get the rate applicable to when the transaction is made. It is paid every 4 weeks as regular as clock work with them working a month in hand.

Re: UK pension payment in the States
 

Tony,

you are the man. That's exactly the kind of info I was looking for.

Thanks!

Re: UK pension payment in the States
 

Hi Chelica2,

The UK people will direct deposit into your American bank account in dollars or sterling, but they advise dollars because they exchange so much loot that their rates are lower than your bank. There is no fee involved in mine.

The thing is that the dollar amount varies because of the fluctuations in relative value. Since the dollar slumped, my UK pension , in dollars has increased by about 5o%. So if you were to start your pension today, you would need to live on perhaps 70% of it because it will reduce when the dollar strengthens.

Re: UK pension payment in the States
 

Thanks, Paddingtongreen!

By direct deposit in sterling, you meant opening a sterling account in US?

Re: UK pension payment in the States
 

are we talking state or private pension here?

Re: UK pension payment in the States
 

UK state!

Re: UK pension payment in the States
 

State pension. Private pension has to be done in the manner Ray explained in an earlier post. Leave it in your UK Bank and transfer it twice/year if you can live without it. I tend to use my UK account for holidays etc and the interest rate you get there is much much better than here as you know.

Re: UK pension payment in the States
 

I know I'm fuzzy on the state/private distinctions for the UK; my spouse was a fireman so I think of it as a governmental pension, but may count as private.

He arranges with the Pension Fund Authority to have his monthly drop deposited in our local account in whichever country we're in. The amount is fixed in GBP and we get whatever the exchange rate is doing for us on the first of the month. Funds take about 5 days to clear and there are no fees obviously attached to it other than the exchange rate.