# UK pension transfer



## Alexjohn

Hi all 

New to the forum....

Have been in NZ for three years now best decision we ever made....need to make some core decisions about our future and wondered if others might be able to help. I have a UK private pension - it's with a good provider and is really our major source of income when I retire (8 years). I am aware of the QROPS option and have had a number of financial people advise me that it would be pretty sensible to move it to NZ...I have read lots on this and I think it seems to make sound financial advice (especially as the rules are about to change). 

My concern is who to trust to help me get the best deal. There are lots of people on line offering to help but they all have fees and this is a lot of money.....does anyone have any advice or experience they could share with me...I would be keen to hear from anyone who has gone through this process and what to watch out for and how to get good honest advice...

Any help or advice would be most welcome...


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## Sha007

Hi,
Tax rules are expected change, effective from 1 April 14. Suggest you first obtain NZ tax advice. I was at a course today and an advisor mentioned that it can take up to 8 months for a transfer to be completed.

When you have an idea of the tax cost, if any, you can then decide if it is worth transferring/withdrawing. I have heard that upon withdrawal there can be substantial losses in the values of the pensions upon withdrawal/transfer.


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## kiwigser

*Pensions*

Not sure if my circumstances apply to anyone else but I have a couple of small pensions that I took early and one that it would cost too much if I took before 65. The two smaller ones are final salary and the other one is guaranteed by the co-op. I have decided to leave them where they are as nobody will give me a better deal and it would cost to transfer them. I pay NZ tax on them as I opted out of UK tax. This arrangement gives me a buffer against currency fluctuations. Good luck


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## Corsair II

I have a portfolio in a SIPP with Hargreaves Lansdown in the UK (that I am very happy with), but am considering transferring it to a QROPS to avoid the 55% death tax. 

Here is how the maths turned out (based on QROPS proposal from reputable firm -- Trustee in Malta with funds managed in Isle of Man).

QROPS: For a portfolio of shares/ETFs of £171K; total annual fees of £3,974 = 2.32% of the value of the portfolio; The Dividend Yield of the portfolio is 5.1%, therefore net pre-tax income is 2.78%. Ouch.

SIPP: For same £171K portfolio, annual fee is £200 = 0.12%. Net pre-tax income is thus 4.98% (given a portfolio yield of 5.1%).

The SIPP option yields 2.2% higher than the QROPS option, but I have the death tax problem. To address the 55% death tax issue, I am considering purchasing a £100K ten year term life insurance policy for £500/year (based on quotes for a 60 year old non-smoker male). I'll worry about it again in 10 years.


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## gsounds

I think you've missed the fact that your QROPS portfolio can be better invested. You should be getting far better returns in a QROPS than the figures you mention there. I would suggest switching wealth advisor. This is the second post I've seen tonight where people are not getting decent financial advice so are having difficulty making decisions.

I took on my wealth manager less than 18 months ago and since then have transferred to a QROPS which is getting around 9% per annum - the fees are set at around £1k per year plus around 1% for the funds within it. I also have a bond out here for my savings which made 11% this year, I think the fees were around 2% of that and grows tax free. 

I have no problem paying the fees as long as I'm making enough on top.


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