Moving Uk pension to Aus superannuation

[Tjsmum]

Afternoon group, 

Does anyone know if it’s possible and how to transfer Uk pension to Aus superannuation?

I stopped paying into my Uk pension around 9months ago as I had decided I would never move back home…

Now I’m wondering if and how to do it? 

I am an Aus/Uk citizen and have lived in Australia for over 10 years surely this would be grounds enough for them to release what I have paid into my Uk pension to transfer to my Aus super 

Many thanks 

[Andrew from Vista Financial]

Hi there

The first question to ask is are you age 55 or over?

The reason I ask is that it is not possible to transfer a UK Pension to an OZ Super otherwise.

Andy

Edited April 11, 2023 by Andrew from Vista Financial
amended

[Marisawright]

2 hours ago, Tjsmum said:

Does anyone know if it’s possible ... to transfer Uk pension to Aus superannuation?

The short answer is no, you can't transfer seamlessly from one to the other, unless you're nearing retirement age.  

[InnerVoice]

@Tjsmum I looked it into this 10 years ago and received (free) independent financial advice from two different IFAs, both here and in the UK. They both stated that it wasn't worth transferring it due to the fees involved, unless I had a huge pension pot (which I don't). It was good advice as far as I'm concerned and I suggest you seek the same, as it's a complicated matter.

Edited April 11, 2023 by InnerVoice

[Tjsmum]

8 minutes ago, InnerVoice said:

@Tjsmum I looked it into this 10 years ago and received (free) independent financial advice from two different IFAs, both here and in the UK. They both stated that it wasn't worth transferring it due to the fees involved, unless I had a huge pension pot (which I don't). It was good advice as far as I'm concerned and I suggest you seek the same, as it's a complicated matter.

@InnerVoice

Thank  you for the info,..

Its sad that the fees have to be high, I suppose it’s to deter people from withdrawing?

Sadly mine isn’t a small fortune either, doesn’t sound like it’s worth the hassle, I was hoping to recover what I had sunk into it over the past few years that I had been doing overseas payments 

 

[Marisawright]

9 minutes ago, Tjsmum said:

Its sad that the fees have to be high, I suppose it’s to deter people from withdrawing?

Sadly mine isn’t a small fortune either, doesn’t sound like it’s worth the hassle, I was hoping to recover what I had sunk into it over the past few years that I had been doing overseas payments 

 

I don't think it 's a deliberate ploy to deter people.  It's just that the two systems are totally different and not designed to transfer between each other. 

It's not like you've lost the money in the UK pension anyway.  It will still be there, increasing in value and eventually you'll be able to collect it.

[Steve Elliott]

From a person currently moving my own pension to Australia from the UK, I can honestly state that "in my opinion", the fees involved are only one of several issues you need to consider. Unless you decide to establish your own SMSF, it is very likely  you will not be able to roll it into your Australian Super fund. Also bear in mind, the general difference  in UK vs Australian Super is that in the UK, pensions are taxable, whereas in Australia, pensions are generally tax free. In Australia, your Super also does not form part of your estate when you die, so in effect you can stipulate who receives your super balance when you die. There are many other issues to consider. In my opinion , too many people focus on fees and exclude other important matters when making the decision. I'm ore than happy to pay professional fees and tax, if I believe I will be better off in the long term.

[Tjsmum]

On 12/04/2023 at 09:26, Steve Elliott said:

From a person currently moving my own pension to Australia from the UK, I can honestly state that "in my opinion", the fees involved are only one of several issues you need to consider. Unless you decide to establish your own SMSF, it is very likely  you will not be able to roll it into your Australian Super fund. Also bear in mind, the general difference  in UK vs Australian Super is that in the UK, pensions are taxable, whereas in Australia, pensions are generally tax free. In Australia, your Super also does not form part of your estate when you die, so in effect you can stipulate who receives your super balance when you die. There are many other issues to consider. In my opinion , too many people focus on fees and exclude other important matters when making the decision. I'm ore than happy to pay professional fees and tax, if I believe I will be better off in the long term.

Thank you for your input, please keep me informed of how the who process goes for you

[Tjsmum]

On 11/04/2023 at 19:45, Marisawright said:

I don't think it 's a deliberate ploy to deter people.  It's just that the two systems are totally different and not designed to transfer between each other. 

It's not like you've lost the money in the UK pension anyway.  It will still be there, increasing in value and eventually you'll be able to collect it.

@Marisawright, from what I understand, you have to have paid a certain amount into your UK pension to be able to access it?

My mum’s best friend finally hit retirement age and was told she didn’t contribute during x , y, z years therefore she didn’t have enough to be able to receive her pension ?!?!

Those years she didn’t contribute because she wasn’t working, she was doing motherhood duties 

[ramot]

15 minutes ago, Tjsmum said:

@Marisawright, from what I understand, you have to have paid a certain amount into your UK pension to be able to access it?

My mum’s best friend finally hit retirement age and was told she didn’t contribute during x , y, z years therefore she didn’t have enough to be able to receive her pension ?!?!

Those years she didn’t contribute because she wasn’t working, she was doing motherhood duties 

That surprised me, because unless the rules have changed? I received 17 years credited to me for child rearing, plus I found out that I could contribute a certain amount before I reached Pension age, to receive a larger pension. Don’t know the age of your mother’s friend, but I was eligible from age 60 to receive my pension. Be a bit unfair if child rearing years are now discounted. 

[InnerVoice]

2 hours ago, Tjsmum said:

@Marisawright, from what I understand, you have to have paid a certain amount into your UK pension to be able to access it?

My mum’s best friend finally hit retirement age and was told she didn’t contribute during x , y, z years therefore she didn’t have enough to be able to receive her pension ?!?!

Those years she didn’t contribute because she wasn’t working, she was doing motherhood duties 

@Tjsmum you need a minimum of 10 qualifying years of NI contributions to qualify for the UK state pension and the amount you receive is determined by how many qualifying years you have in total. I believe that's what you are referring to above? Depending on how many qualifying years you have already, it maybe worth you making additional contributions so you qualify for at least part of the UK state pension when you reach retirement age.

In your original post you asked about transferring your UK pension to Australian superannuation, which implies you also have a UK private pension. I'd seriously consider getting some proper financial advice so you don't miss out like your mum's friend did.

[Marisawright]

3 hours ago, Tjsmum said:

@Marisawright, from what I understand, you have to have paid a certain amount into your UK pension to be able to access it?

That's the UK government pension, not a private pension.  Which one did you want to know about?

[Tjsmum]

19 hours ago, Marisawright said:

That's the UK government pension, not a private pension.  Which one did you want to know about?

@Marisawright my apologies, I thought everyone in the UK received the Govt pension, I didn’t realise there was a private fund like Aus has (superannuation).

I would like to know about my UK govt pension that I was making voluntary contributions into 

[Marisawright]

1 hour ago, Tjsmum said:

@Marisawright my apologies, I thought everyone in the UK received the Govt pension, I didn’t realise there was a private fund like Aus has (superannuation).

I would like to know about my UK govt pension that I was making voluntary contributions into 

Ah, OK.  Steve (and most others) were talking about a private pension, so ignore all that.  

You cannot transfer your UK govt pension to Australia.  The money you've paid in isn't wasted,  because you'll still get the pension when you retire, provided you've already paid at least 10 years' contributions. 

The nice thing is that the UK pension isn't means-tested.  So when you reach retirement age, they'll just start paying it.  Make sure you keep HMRC advised of your  address, and then when you retire, they'll send you a letter asking for your bank details.  You can then decide whether to have it paid straight into your Aussie bank account (I do), or have it paid to a UK bank account (which can be a handy way to build a kitty for holidays, Xmas presents etc).  

The Australian government will take your British pension into account when assessing how much Australian pension to give you.  However it's not dollar-for-dollar, so you'll still be better off having the two pensions.  

 

[Tulip1]

On 13/04/2023 at 10:21, InnerVoice said:

Those years she didn’t contribute because she wasn’t working, she was doing motherhood duties 

If she was getting child benefit in those years (or for most of them) that would have given her credits which amount to the same as if she was working.  It’s along the same lines as a carer for example.  They are given credits as they are getting a government benefit for caring for others at home.  A problem can arise however if the other parent (the working one that wasn’t caring for the children at home, often the father) applies for and receives the child benefit.  It is then that parent who builds up the credits even if not needed.  Perhaps your mums friend didn’t get the child benefit, rather it went to the other parent.  That’s a shame if so.  It doesn’t happen very often but I’ve heard of it happening over the years.  

[Tjsmum]

On 14/04/2023 at 17:54, Marisawright said:

Ah, OK.  Steve (and most others) were talking about a private pension, so ignore all that.  

You cannot transfer your UK govt pension to Australia.  The money you've paid in isn't wasted,  because you'll still get the pension when you retire, provided you've already paid at least 10 years' contributions. 

The nice thing is that the UK pension isn't means-tested.  So when you reach retirement age, they'll just start paying it.  Make sure you keep HMRC advised of your  address, and then when you retire, they'll send you a letter asking for your bank details.  You can then decide whether to have it paid straight into your Aussie bank account (I do), or have it paid to a UK bank account (which can be a handy way to build a kitty for holidays, Xmas presents etc).  

The Australian government will take your British pension into account when assessing how much Australian pension to give you.  However it's not dollar-for-dollar, so you'll still be better off having the two pensions.  

 

@Marisawright Thank you for the info, much appreciated