technical papers

* Becoming a QROPS

* State Pensions

glossary

contribution caps

Transfers from overseas funds are also tested against the Australian contribution caps.

Concessional Cap:

• a limit of $25,000 per individual applies in the 2009/10, 2010/11 and 2011/12 financial years and a limit of $50,000 applies in the 2007/08 and 2008/09 financial years. These limits are indexed in line with AWOTE in $5,000 increments.
• for those aged 50 and above, there is a $50,000 non indexed transitional limit for the 2009/10, 2010/11 and 2011/12 financial years, and a $100,000 non indexed transitional limit for the 2007/08 and 2008/09 financial years.

Non Concessional Cap:

• $150,000 per person with the ability of those under age 65 to bring forward two years i.e. $450,000. The bring forward is not available after age 65 and a gainfully working test is also involved. After age 75 no contributions are possible.

Exceeding the cap results in an additional 31.5% tax on the concessional contributions (in addition to the 15% tax) and 46.5% on the non concessional.

This is an Australian ruling, and unfortunately is at odds with the UK rulings, which insists that the UK Pensions transfer all funds. In cases where the transfer value is more than the Australian Contribution Cap, alternative arrangements have to be looked at.

life time allowance

A standard lifetime allowance is the maximum amount of pension savings that can benefit from tax relief in the UK, and is set at £1.8 million for 2010.

QROPS

Each fund requesting transfers from the UK must be a Qualified Registered Overseas Pension Scheme. Without QROPS approval UK funds are unable to transfer funds to overseas funds. Approval can be gained by application to HMRC in the UK.

SMSF

Is a Self Managed Superannuation Fund and is set up by yourself or your financial adviser. The fund is able to have 1 to 4 members and is controlled by the trustees/directors, which are you and your members.

CETV

A Cash Equivalent Transfer Value is provided by the transferring fund and is the transfer value, calculated on the date of processing.

letter of authority

A Letter of Authority is a letter signed by the client, giving us permission to communicate with the UK funds on their behalf.

swift code

SWIFT is the transfer service that banks use to make international transfers. All banks have a unique SWIFT Code.

IBAN

An International Bank Account Number is a unique identifier that allows the branch to be identified, this is equivalent to the UK bank sort code.

HMRC

HMRC stands for “Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs” and is the organisation that awards QROPS approval in the UK. The equivalent in Australia is the Australian Tax Office (ATO).

tax calc

Once a fund is transferred a Tax Calculation is required to determine the tax payable on the growth of the fund, since date of residency in Australia.

SIPP

A SIPP is a Self Invested Personal Pension and is available in the UK. A SIPP allows you to choose how and when you invest your funds. It is similar to our Australian SMSF.

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UK transfer dataform .. >

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DIY pack .. >

If you prefer to do your transfer yourself - our DIY pack shows you how.