Hi I am trying to help out a friend who has an English private pension in drawdown, hes not taking income from it. He is taking English state pension and still working in France as a self employed micro entrepreneur. What are his options? He cannot get advice from either French or English financial advisers due to his circumstances. We are not talking a huge amount of money, approx £40K. He mentioned waiting to leave money to his daughter. He is 68. Could he take a joint life annuity with his daughter? Any help greatly appreciated.
Why have the advisers said they can’t help?
Try @GeorgeSymes_IFA
Can’t help without large fees
Mine is in drawdown. He should be able to get monthly or annual payments to a uk bank account. He needs to talk to his IFA
He may not be able to get advice because of the financial passports issue. However they should still be able to take action if he tells them what he wants, and doesn’t move money out of uk but has it paid into uk account.
1 Like
Ensure a person has an EU financial passport is engaged., if you must.
I got screwed, but got my revenge and he was a relation.
If the policy is with Standard Grife the person will have to take the whole sum
Having been through a lot of wrangling over my own UK private pensions I’ve gained some knowledge about this.
If he already has a pension product that allows him to draw down money as & when he wants then surely there is no problem, apart from maybe having to have it paid in £s…?
If he wants to open a new financial product with a UK provider then he will probably hit the problem of not being able to open new business as a non-UK resident. I found that the only really practical solution was to withdraw all the funds.
Thanks for your input. The problem is he has no UK bank account and tried to open a regular account and failed as he has no UK address.. Would he be able to open a Wise account to have any monies paid into?
Yes
There would be the usual identity and money laundering verifications but that would be the same anywhere.
If he leaves capital in a pension then from the tax year beginning Apeil 2027 it’s treated as part of his estate for tax if there’s any left on his demise (was previously pretty much exempt from inheritance tax) if he’s still subject to UK tax. A France Form Individual for the pension fund signed by his local French Impóts would prove not. But there would still be withholdings by provider I think even though those could, anecdotally here potentially with a lot of persistence delay and stress, be reclaimed from HMRC.
The curremt 6 75% net cost on a total lump sum on first withdrawal if a France resident payablr to French Impôts looks ok but if it’s already in drawdown it soundsvlike he’s lost that option on that particular pot ahem.
Who’s the provider? They vary in competence and flexibility and I’d wonder if transfer to fresh pot is an option for any funds kicking around.. Is thisvone his own pot that he’s contributed to himself, as it sounds? Or an employer pension?
Hi Karen,
Its a personal pension (his own pot) with Phoenix Wealth. I think he wants some tax free cash but have no idea how French tax authorities would treat this. Its in capped drawdown and hes not taking any income.
It’s worth asking the provider of they will pay into a French/Euro account. It seems a bit odd that they have arranged a drawdown pension without sorting where the money would go (i.e. the provider should have asked at the time).
I know nothing about Wise but there are many on this forum who do.
It will be treated as any other regular pension income - as part of their income for tax purposes, in the same way that a UK state pension is. Don’t get confused with one-off lump sums that will be treated differently (the 6,75% that @KarenLot mentions).