Interesting time
Stewart Davies, chief executive at Momentum Pensions, which has operations in Malta, said his company has received approval for changes within its own Maltese schemes in line with other providers in Malta, to ensure compliance with the new flexibility regulations.
“This remains an interesting time for the international pensions market with ongoing reviews by HMRC of non-EU schemes, and we expect further announcements in due course, but most probably, following the UK general election.”
Paul Davies, director at Global QROPS, said the biggest area of concern for QROPS providers should be the ban on public sector pension transfers first mentioned in HM Treasury’s Free and Choice in Pensions document in March last year.
In the subsequent consultation document released the following April, it was confirmed that unfunded public sector transfers would be banned but local government pensions would remain exempt.
Davies said that while many advisers will be aware of this ban, many members of the public sector schemes, particularly deferred members living overseas, have not been directly communicated regarding the ban.
He said that the next step is for advisers to provide the advice and the member to sign the original discharge forms, drafted by the scheme’s administrator, before they are countersigned by the receiving QROPS.
“This elongated process has meant that many members will miss the deadline during one stage of the process or another,” he said. “Delay in the process, meaning a transfer is not possible, could lead to some complaints following the pension reforms.”
