After years of saving into your pension fund, you’ve now decided you want to retire and are overwhelmed by the retirement options available. We can work with you to choose the right strategy in order for you to enjoy your retirement years.
If appropriate to your particular situation, one option you may wish to consider is Flexible Drawdown. Perhaps the most radical aspect of the new income drawdown rules that were introduced from 6 April 2011 is that, under Flexible Drawdown, there is no limit on the amount of income that you can draw each year.
The usual tax-free lump sum is allowed but any other withdrawals taken by you are taxed as income in the tax year they are paid. If you become a non-UK resident while in Flexible Drawdown, any income drawn when non-resident will be subject to UK tax if you return to the UK within five tax years of taking it.
As the name suggests, this option is much more flexible than income drawdown. Qualifying for this option removes the cap on the income you can take.
You can draw as much income as you like when you like. However, Flexible Drawdown will not be available to everyone and there are certain criteria that must be met before you can choose it.
Giving those with very large funds more flexibility
Those over the age of 55 who can show that they have secured pension income in excess of £20,000 per annum will be able to drawdown an unlimited amount from their pension funds each year, but this will be treated as income for tax purposes.
The income included for satisfying the new Minimum Income Requirement (MIR) includes the basic state pension, additional state pension, level annuity income and scheme pensions. Please note income from purchased life annuities and drawdown arrangements do not count.
The lump sum required to purchase an annuity that will satisfy the MIR, assuming the full state pension is payable, will be about £200,000. This means that this option is available only to a small number of wealthy individuals.
A drawdown pension, using income withdrawal or short-term annuities, is complex and is not suitable for everyone. It is riskier than an annuity as the income received is not guaranteed and will vary depending on the value and performance of underlying assets.
