The UK pension reforms which allow savings to effectively be accessed as a bank account have been extended to the QROPS model, but not every jurisdiction is currently in a position to offer this. To allow ‘open season’ to take effect on overseas schemes, each individual QROPS jurisdiction must first amend their own legislation to […]
Young Britain Facing Pension Uncertainty
July 15, 2014
In a poll carried out by UK pension providers, a staggering 74% of those currently in employment had no idea of when they would be able to access their own pension. While most of the UK has now come to terms with the idea of having to work beyond 65, there is much uncertainty surrounding […]
Gordon Brown’s Legacy Remains
April 28, 2014
Despite proving as short lived a Prime Minister as can be recently recalled, the true extent of Gordon Brown’s effect on the lives of the working man can be traced back to 1997 when he was chancellor. It has now been revealed exactly how much Gordon Brown single handedly decimated final salary schemes to the […]
U.S. public pension funding hits 75%
March 5, 2014
According to the latest annual report by Wilshire Consulting, American public pensions funding has grown after 2013’s larger investment returns. The investment analytics and consulting firm projected that 134 public retirement schemes had sufficient assets to cover almost three quarters of their obligations for the year ending on the 30th of June, 2013. This is […]
Illinois’ pension reform faces fresh problems
January 14, 2014
Late last year, Illinois governor Pat Quinn signed a bill overhauling the current process for how pensioners receive their funds. Before enacting this law, retirees would receive a yearly 3% increase to their stipends in line with inflation and the increased cost of living. These will be reduced come the 1st of June. However, many […]
Pension funds launch claim against The Royal Bank of Scotland
September 16, 2013
A claim has been started against The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) over a rights issue which occurred in 2008. The bank sold its shares at £2 each, and now the claimants are alleging that whilst the bank’s prospectus portrayed good financial health, the reality was in fact very different. It has been proposed that […]
Retirement Is Often Not Healthy or Wealthy
August 9, 2013
Pension providers are giving a retirement health and wealth warning after a study revealed millions of pensioners are hit by major life changes in the first five years after giving up work. Almost a third (31%) say their health worsened, with 10% confirming doctors diagnosed they were suffering from a serious illness. More than a […]
Global Balance Of Economic Power Is Shifting
July 10, 2013
Ebbing and flowing economic power around the globe has caused the British government to look at how changing wealth patterns will affect government policy – but they are also a useful indicator for investors as well. The report points out that financial power is not shifting inside traditional national boundaries, but in other more subtle […]
HMRC QROPS List FAQ
July 3, 2013
HM Revenue and Customs QROPS list is a public resource that tells investors and pension administrators if a Qualifying Recognised Overseas Pension Scheme is recognised as a bona fide scheme by the tax authority – with some reservations. HMRC explains how the list works in a manual for tax inspectors that is also freely available […]
Osborne Axes Winter Fuel Pay For Expat Pensioners
June 30, 2013
British government spending cuts offer cold comfort for thousands of expat state pensioners living in warmer climes as Chancellor George Osborne has axed their winter fuel payments. Around 100,000 British pensioners claiming the benefit live in warmer European countries – with most in the south of Spain. As state pensions living in the European Union, […]
