Following pressure from the industry, HMRC has refined its stance on death in service lump sum benefits for those applying for Fixed Protection.
Towers Watson points that the more common forms of death benefit provision, even if they are subject to insurability clauses, will continue to be...
Fixed Protection enables an individual to retain a £1.8m lifetime allowance (LTA) with effect from 6 April 2012, when the standard LTA will reduce to £1.5m. In order to benefit from Fixed Protection the individual must cease all active accrual of retirement pension and/or money...
Andy Bell, chief executive of platform provider A J Bell has called on the government to include a moratorium on changing key pension rules, to last for at least a decade, in the Budget.
Mr Bell says, “The current speculation around changes to the annual allowance and higher rate relief on...
For the first time since 2001/2, Britons saved more into stocks and shares ISAs than personal pensions last tax year.
Figures from the Office for National Statistics show that £14.28bn was saved into personal pensions (excluding stakeholder) in the 2010/11 tax year compared to £15.837bn...
LibDems move on higher rate relief reports Ceri Jones, financial journalist
As trailed in this column last month, the LibDems are to call formally for the Coalition to cut tax relief on pension contributions by higher rate taxpayers.
The party’s spring conference in Gateshead in March is also expected to reiterate the call for a “mansion tax” on...
People with ‘enhanced protection’ on pensions valued up to £1.8m could benefit from switching to fixed protection before the tax year end deadline according to Skandia. If they continue with enhanced protection, their maximum tax-free cash allowance will fall to £375,000...
From 6 April 2011 the annual allowance for tax relief on pension savings in a registered pension scheme has reduced to £50,000. Readers will find the calculator on the HMRC website helpful to work out their pensions savings.
A new interpretation of the pension tax rules has opened up opportunities for pension investors to make significant contributions to their pension scheme.
HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) has announced changes to its interpretation of the "carry forward" rules which allow investors to...
People with large pensions must act before April 2012 to avoid tax charges.
Individuals with substantial pensions risk suffering avoidable tax charges if they do not take action before April 2012, warns JLT Wealth Management. Anyone who wants to can apply to retain the current £1.8m...
More than 18,000 pension investors are at risk of loss of protection from auto-enrolment contributions.
Freedom of Information figures, obtained by platform provider A J Bell, reveal that 18,574 individuals are at risk of losing protection of their pension benefits when new auto-enrolment rules...
More than 18,000 pension investors are at risk of loss of protection from auto-enrolment contributions.
Freedom of Information figures obtained by platform provider A J Bell reveal that 18,574 individuals are at risk of losing protection of their pension benefits when new auto-enrolment rules...
Punter Southall has published the latest in its series of High Earners Survival Guides. In this latest note, it covers recent developments including:
HMRC and the DWP have published a number of draft regulations relating to the annual and lifetime allowances
changes have been made to the...
Until 5 April, it is likely to remain attractive for employers to establish new employer-financed retirement benefit schemes (EFRBs) or to make additional contributions to existing schemes according to PwC.
Marc Hommel, pensions partner at PwC commented: "For those people hit by the...
Many employers will need to rethink their response to the pensions tax arising through the annual allowance, according to PwC. They do not have long as this new regime comes into force this April.
The annual allowance charge will typically affect long serving members of final salary pension...
Rhys Thomas, solicitor, looks at the tax breaks available for UK residents from overseas pension arrangements
Members of UK registered pension schemes enjoy tax relief on contributions and tax free investment returns. This has to be weighed against:
income tax plus the various pension taxes introduced from 6 April 2006 (A Day) – the lifetime allowance charge (LAC) on excess benefits, the annual...
HIGH EARNERS
The government estimates that 100,000 individuals could be impacted by the new annual allowance rules alone, as the new pension tax regime comes into effect from 6 April 2011.
A reduced annual allowance for pension contributions of £50,000 and an increase in the valuation...
New rules announced today - http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/d/disguised_remuneration.pdf - say that employer payments into employer financed retirement benefit schemes (EFRBS) and similar vehicles such as Employee Benefit Trusts (EBTs) will be subject to income tax and national insurance as...
The Government has confirmed that the lifetime allowance will be reduced to £1.5m from 6 April 2012.
However people with savings above £1.5m, or those with funds under £1.5m who believe the value of their pension pot will breach this level due to future investment growth, will...
Changes made by pension schemes in 2006 and a legacy A-Day clause could result in high earning pension scheme members being hit by a tax charge in respect of pension contributions made a year sooner than they expected, according to Mercer.
With the regulations due to come into force on 5 April...
Leaving pension administrators scarcely six months to implement the new tax changes, the government has finally announced its revised pension tax proposals.
The annual allowance is reduced from £255,000 to £50,000 (which will not be indexed to reflect inflation until 2016 at the...
