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Drawdown – Pension Annuitisation Proposed Changes

admin — Thu, 09 Dec 2010 16:05:46 +0000

From 6 April 2011 the requirement to secure a pension income by age 75 is being removed and this will be achieved through a number of changes:
• the ASP rules are being repealed for new and existing pensioners, so removing the effective requirement for pension savers to buy an annuity by the age of 75;
• the maximum income that an individual may withdraw from most drawdown pension funds will be capped at 100 per cent of the equivalent annuity (as defined above) but will apply for as long as an individual retains the fund. The minimum annual withdrawal amount from age 75 is abolished;
• the maximum capped amount that may be withdrawn will be determined at least every three years until the end of the year in which the member reaches the age of 75, after which reviews will be carried out annually;
• individuals with drawdown pensions who have a lifetime pension income of at least
£20,000 a year will be able to access the whole of their drawdown funds as pension income without a limit on annual withdrawal (subject to their provider offering flexible drawdown pensions); any new pension savings for an individual once a scheme has accepted an application to access the whole of their drawdown pension fund will be liable to the annual allowance charge on all pension input amounts;
• an individual making a withdrawal from a flexible drawdown pension fund during a period when they are resident outside the UK for a period of less than five full tax years will be liable for UK income tax on that withdrawal for the tax year in which they become UK resident again;
• most of the rules preventing registered pension schemes from paying lump sum benefits after the member has reached the age of 75 are being removed;
• the tax rate for all lump sum death benefits is to be set at 55 per cent, apart from death benefits for those who die before age 75 without having taken a pension, which will remain tax free; and
• unused drawdown pension funds of a member who dies with no living dependants may be donated tax free to a charity.

The changes above will also apply to members of non-UK pension schemes who have received either tax relief on contributions or funds transferred from registered pension schemes. The inheritance tax (IHT) changes proposed under this measure are as follows:
• with effect from 6 April 2011, IHT will not typically apply to drawdown pension funds remaining under a registered pension scheme, including when the individual dies after reaching the age of 75;
• with effect from 6 April 2011, IHT anti-avoidance charges that apply to registered pension schemes and Qualifying Non UK Pension (QNUP) Schemes where the scheme member omits to take their retirement entitlements (e.g. a failure to buy an annuity) will be removed;
Source: HM Treasury

How does the Removal of Compulsory Annuitisation affect Income Drawdown

admin — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 10:36:41 +0000

With income drawdown your pension fund remains invested and after taking any tax free cash you require up to a maximum of 25% of the fund value, you can draw an income from this fund. The income that can be taken is anything from £0 to 120% of the Government Actuaries Department (GAD) rate for your age and gender.

In its emergency Budget, the new Government announced its intention to “end the effective requirement to use a pension fund to buy an annuity by age 75, with effect from 2011-12”. Unfortunately, that is just about all it has said. It has introduced a temporary arrangement for those approaching age 75 by increasing the age by which an annuity must be purchased to 77, and has confirmed that anyone dying after 22 June and over the age of 75 will be subject to the USP death benefit rules, rather than the far more penal ASP regime. However, rather confusingly, it appears that it is still necessary to elect to take any tax-free cash by age 75.

Income Drawdown Calculator

To find out how much income you can drawdown under the GAD rules from your income drawdown plan you should use an income drawdown calculator. The maximum level of income can be quickly found by using the income drawdown calculator.

Welcome to Income Drawdown Blog

admin — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 18:11:16 +0000

Welcome to our new income drawdown blog.