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Protecting tax-free cash on transfer
Protecting tax-free cash on transfer is, and always has been, one of the most popular queries we receive. More specifically, what happens if an individual who is entitled to tax-free cash of more than 25% is transferring to another plan?
It's a tricky subject, so we’ve summarised the conditions where tax-free cash of more than 25% will survive a transfer and set out the answers to some of the more common questions we receive.
The conditions
There are two main types of transfer where tax-free cash of more than 25% would be protected - a block transfer and a transfer where the scheme is being wound-up.
Block (or buddy) transfer
- more than one member of the scheme must transfer at the same time to the same scheme,
- ‘same time’ doesn’t mean funds have to transfer on the same day, so long as the transfers are obviously meant to be part of the same transaction,
- ‘same scheme’ can mean to personal pension plans with the same provider,
- all of the scheme benefits have to be transferred – a partial transfer doesn’t protect tax-free cash,
- and the member can’t have been a member of the receiving scheme for longer than 12 months – a particular issue if they’ve already got a personal pension with the receiving provider.
Wind-up transfer
- the member has protected tax-free cash, and
- the existing scheme must be winding up, and
- the receiving scheme must be a deferred annuity contract, usually a Section-32 plan.
Some common questions
1. The member is already in a s.32, can they block transfer to a personal pension?
No – a s.32 is a single member scheme so there’s no buddy to block transfer with. Tax-free cash protection would only apply if they were transferring to another s.32.
2. The member is in a one man EPP, can they block transfer to a personal pension plan?
No, again there isn't a buddy – they’d have to wind-up the EPP and transfer to a s.32 or transfer to a personal pension and accept that tax-free cash will drop to 25%.
3. If tax-free cash is protected on transfer, will the same happen if the member transfers again?
If it was a block transfer, yes if the block transfer conditions are met each time. If it was a wind-up transfer, tax-free cash protection would be maintained if all three conditions continued to be met. This means that a member could effectively transfer from S32 to S32 and continue to have protected tax-free cash indefinitely.
4. Can the member do a wind-up transfer to a personal pension?
No, it would have to be to a s.32.
5. The member’s in a s.32 and wants drawdown which the plan doesn’t provide. Can he take protected tax-free cash from the s.32 and then take drawdown from another provider?
No, if he takes tax-free cash from the s.32, he can then only take an annuity from the s.32 provider (or another annuity provider using the open market option). He could however use the wind-up route to transfer to another s.32 that does provide drawdown which would allow him to get his protected tax-free cash and drawdown benefits. Some providers market s.32 plans that can nominally provide drawdown but only at minimum GAD levels (i.e. zero). If a wind-up transfer is made to these plans, they can pay the protected tax-free cash and provide drawdown with no income being taken. A transfer in drawdown can then be made to a ‘real’ drawdown plan.
6. Two members are block transferring. One is going to a personal pension plan while the other is going to a group personal pension plan with the same provider. Does this count as the same scheme for block transfer purposes?
Yes, it would as long as both plans were part of the same scheme (most are). Stakeholder and personal pension plans are usually separate schemes however, so if one was going to a stakeholder scheme and another to a personal pension plan with the same provider, this wouldn’t satisfy the block transfer rules.
Published 20 April 2010
Updated 15 June 2011
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The information provided is based on our current understanding of the relevant legislation and regulations and may be subject to alteration as a result of changes in legislation or practice.
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