“Two years ago, when HMRC removed all of the approved Australian Rops bar one, a lot of clients were left in a state of limbo,” Stuart Denness, managing director of STM Australia, told International Adviser.
“Some advisers inadvertently found themselves in a position where their clients may have suffered as a result of the change. So it has been a concern for some that HMRC or the Australian Tax Office could change the rules again.
“Part of my role is to re-energise and reinvigorate those advisers,” he said, citing the “massive opportunities” in the Australian market.
“When people move, their pension, which is typically the second largest asset we own after our home, is left behind. There is a huge number of Australian nationals who have returned and don’t know what to do with the pots of money that have in the UK,” Denness said.
Australian transfer
The launch of STM’s Gibraltar-based Australian superannuation scheme is directly targeted at Australians returning home, as well as British expats.
The STM Gibraltar (AUS) Superannuation Scheme has been included on HM Revenue & Custom’s Rops list and has also been recognised by the Australian Tax Office (ATO) as a foreign super scheme.
The scheme is available worldwide and offers all the advantages of a standard Rops, with the additional benefit of complete certainty of tax treatment for individuals who are, or are likely to become, resident in Australia.
Foreign Super status is subject to well established tax rule in Australia that ensure the ATO does not tax growth arising within the scheme.
“This product is available worldwide and with as many as 50,000 UK nationals emigrating every year, plus returning Australians, there is likely to be significant interest from those who are not yet Australian resident,” he said.
The company said it was also looking at opportunities to enter the Australian retail superannuation market with the intention of being able to provide clients with a full service solution.
STM’s new expat super product follows the launch by IVCM, formerly known as Brooklands Pensions, of its Australian Expatriate Superannuation Fund in August.
