Pensions

[romay]

We are hoping to immigrate to Brisbane in Sept/Oct 2015. What we need to know is whether to leave our private pensions in the UK - they are not in payment until July - or should we transfer them to

Oz. We are worried about being taxed twice (if we leave them here and are taxed by HM tax office and then we get taxed again in Oz. Any advise would be most appreciated - very confused at present!!

 

Many thanks:arghh::arghh:

[MARYROSE02]

You won't be taxed twice because there is a double taxation agreement between the two countries. However, you may have to submit a tax return in both countries if you are living in one and have income in the other, or income in both.

 

Telephone HMRC for starters.(They won't bite!) And when you get to OZ, find a tax agent to prepare your return for you. Their fee is a tax deduction. You can do your return yourself if you prefer. Look on the ATO website for more information.

[Bungo]

There is so much more to consider than just taxation. This is a matter best discussed with a financial advisor, one who has full view of the facts such as the specifics of your particular pension.

[BacktoDemocracy]

We are hoping to immigrate to Brisbane in Sept/Oct 2015. What we need to know is whether to leave our private pensions in the UK - they are not in payment until July - or should we transfer them to

Oz. We are worried about being taxed twice (if we leave them here and are taxed by HM tax office and then we get taxed again in Oz. Any advise would be most appreciated - very confused at present!!

 

Many thanks:arghh::arghh:

Problem is if you leave them in the uk you are at the mercy of exchange fluctuation and the freedoms for pensions and taxation of contributions is better in oz and freedom from tax when you take your pension pot are better than the uk in my opinion but the downside is that once you move your pensions to oz you can't move them back again, they are locked into oz and that can be a problem if you don't like oz, check how long you have to move them tax free and see how it goes, the pound is strengthening and is likely to continue so you will not lose out by delaying but you will need to keep a check on the exchange rate and whether there is a restriction on tax free window, you will also learn about the various options for investing in funds with low fees, usually called something like trade funds, as fees can be onerous with management funds in oz

Edited April 29, 2015 by BacktoDemocracy

[romay]

Many thanks for helpful responses.

[winter1]

Problem is if you leave them in the uk you are at the mercy of exchange fluctuation and the freedoms for pensions and taxation of contributions is better in oz and freedom from tax when you take your pension pot are better than the uk in my opinion but the downside is that once you move your pensions to oz you can't move them back again, they are locked into oz and that can be a problem if you don't like oz, check how long you have to move them tax free and see how it goes, the pound is strengthening and is likely to continue so you will not lose out by delaying but you will need to keep a check on the exchange rate and whether there is a restriction on tax free window, you will also learn about the various options for investing in funds with low fees, usually called something like trade funds, as fees can be onerous with management funds in oz

 

It very much depends on the type of pension final salary ones in particular are not always viable to transfer. Also you say they aren't, in payment till July, is that this year? You may not have time before they are in payment. It is best to get proper financial advice Andrew from Vista is around on this forum and he has posted useful threads on this in the past.

Also Remember any UK State pension will be frozen at the level when you first draw it in Aus.

 

.

F

[Gbye grey sky]

There is so much more to consider than just taxation. This is a matter best discussed with a financial advisor, one who has full view of the facts such as the specifics of your particular pension.

 

Definitely agree with this. There are so many variables and your options narrow once you start drawing the pension so professional INDEPENDANT advice now for you is essential. Unless you only have small pension pots the wrong strategy could be very costly.

[MARYROSE02]

I have a Royal Mail pension which pays out monthly and, so far, I have chosen to have it paid into my UK bank account, and then I transfer it when I need it. I could write to Royal Mail Pensions and instruct them to transfer it to my Aussie bank account. In fact, I should do that if only to find out if there is still a fee for doing so - same as I pay my UK bank for transferring the money. My God, I suddenly feel like I could be an idiot if I've been paying unnecessary fees for that transfer!

 

I'm not sure if you can transfer the pension itself out to Australia and have it paid in Australian dollars. Maybe you can do that with private pension lump sums? If you have a 'final salary' pension, I don't think you would even want to to do that. My Royal Mail pension is a 'Final Salary' one, and I've already had one cost of living increase

[MARYROSE02]

I took my own advice and sent an email to Royal Mail pensions. To be fair, I was planning to let my pension build up in my UK bank account, and only transfer it as and when I needed it. Unfortunately, I need it every month, along with my rental income from my UK house.

[Skippy1]

Never pay your Bank for transferring money. We use Currencyfiar on a regular basis $4 transfer fee and best rates you can get. Once you set it up its very easy to use. Highly recommend them

[Andrew from Vista Financial]

We are hoping to immigrate to Brisbane in Sept/Oct 2015. What we need to know is whether to leave our private pensions in the UK - they are not in payment until July - or should we transfer them to

Oz. We are worried about being taxed twice (if we leave them here and are taxed by HM tax office and then we get taxed again in Oz. Any advise would be most appreciated - very confused at present!!

 

Many thanks:arghh::arghh:

 

Hi Romay

 

There have been some good replies to this already, as mentioned it will depend on the type of pensions as to your options....are you able to clarify what type ie defined benefit or defined contribution and who they are with?

 

Regards

 

Andy