UK SIPP & QROPS

[Worma]

Hi Folks

I am thinking of starting the process of placing my UK private pension(s) in to a SIPP and then transferring in to a QROPS fund here in AU. I am 58 years old and an AU citizen with no plans of returning to the UK.

Does anyone have any experience in this process?

Will it be the most tax efficient process in that is this the most favourable way to go or would it be just as well to take the hit from the UK tax men (UK & AU) and just close the schemes down and send the funds here?

If this is the way to go can anyone recommend or know of any decent SIPP providers in the UK?

[Andrew from Vista Financial]

Hey Worma

We are certainly in a position to Advise on this.

I believe that Diane from the office has just booked you in to have an initial consult with me.

Look forward to speaking then

 

Andy

[Worma]

Thanks Andy.

[Marisawright]

@Worma, it's a minefield and I would just stick with the professional advice you get from Andy.  Get it wrong and it can cost you a fortune in tax!

One issue to be aware of is that right now, there is only one fund in Australia that is QROPS approved. It's a private firm and a very new player -- how do you know they'll do a good job or that they're secure?  Super funds aren't covered by the bank guarantee scheme.  I expect Alan will know more about the company behind the fund, who may well have a longer track record.  Good luck with it.

[Worma]

On 28/11/2023 at 12:34, Marisawright said:

@Worma, it's a minefield and I would just stick with the professional advice you get from Andy.  Get it wrong and it can cost you a fortune in tax!

One issue to be aware of is that right now, there is only one fund in Australia that is QROPS approved. It's a private firm and a very new player -- how do you know they'll do a good job or that they're secure?  Super funds aren't covered by the bank guarantee scheme.  I expect Alan will know more about the company behind the fund, who may well have a longer track record.  Good luck with it.

Thanks very much for your reply.

Yes, I'm just realising that it is indeed a minefield, let's see what Andy says...

[Steve Elliott]

I am in the process of moving my UK funds to Australia and am using  the one retail fund which is (Q)ROPS compliant. 

To be clear unless you are taking (paying) for financial advice, the selection of investments is pretty much your own personal choice. It's not like many superfunds whee you have the option of selecting various sleeves such as growth, balanced, conservative etc where performance relies on the asset allocation, investment skills of a fund manager, instead, the investor has a menu of funds and ETFs to chose from. There's a fair bit of choice for the typical investor. Many of the ETFs and funds have low/competitive fees however the administration fee is relatively high. So really, its not fund manager performance/investment track record which we need to look at as it will be different for everyone. It's more about the integrity, compliance of the trustee, custodian etc all of which have very stringent reporting obligations.