With UK pension transfers to France becoming ever more popular, expats need to stay abreast of developments in the marketplace. With over 3000 providers on the official QROPS list, there are many different jurisdictions to choose from. It is necessary to be sure, however, that your UK pension transfer is being handled by a provider/jurisdiction that complies with HMRC rules.
Any uncertainty over QROPS and the laws governing their structure now appears to have been cleared up. The UK House of Parliament has finalised the much-awaited amendments which seek to clear up anomalies within the legislation. The Registered Pension Schemes and Overseas Pension Schemes (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2013 were put before Parliament during September and came into force on the 14 October 2013.
HMRC have introduced additional reporting requirements for Qualifying Registered Overseas Pension Schemes. These include the following:
- Managers are required to renew the status of their schemes every five years with HMRC. Failure to do so will result in the scheme losing its QROPS status
- Providers must report payments that have been made from funds transferred out of a UK pension scheme. Former schemes must also abide by these requirements
- Former providers that have been found to have breached the rules will be subject to penalties
- HMRC will have the power to remove the QROPS status from providers should the scheme manager provide false or misleading information in terms of the scheme’s compliance with applicable legislation
- Information notices may be issued to third parties by HMRC in particular circumstances without requiring the consent of either the QROPS member or provider. An example of such a situation would be HMRC seeking to clarify the tax position of a member
For further information on UK pension transfers to France, please download our free QROPS Guide