British Abroad

If you’re looking for UK expat pension advice, you’ve probably been bombarded with conflicting pension advice, baffled by industry jargon, and left wondering where your hard-earned money is actually sitting. You’re not alone. Thousands of UK nationals living abroad are struggling to make sense of their workplace or private pensions — never mind make them work harder.

This is your no-nonsense guide to cutting through the noise and getting help with your pensions while living overseas.

Here, we’re focused purely on company and/or personal pensions — workplace schemes, SIPPs, private pensions, frozen pots, company pensions now in administration — and how to manage them as an expat.

Forget the State Pension for now. That’s another beast entirely.

Need UK State Pension advice? Click here

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Common Pension Headaches Expats Face

1. Too many pots, too little clarity.
You may have pensions scattered across multiple jobs back in the UK. Many expats don’t even remember all the schemes they were enrolled in, let alone how to access them. That’s a problem.

2. Lost growth potential.
A pension pot left unmanaged could be sitting in low-performing funds, racking up fees and doing little to grow. Worse still, your provider might not even allow you to manage it now that you’re non-resident.

3. No idea what to do with it.
Drawdown? Annuity? Transfer abroad? What about tax implications in your new country? These questions can’t be answered by guesswork. If you don’t know the answers already, you need a professional.

4. Dodgy advice and scammy providers.
Unfortunately, expats are prime targets for financial cowboys. Unregulated SIPP providers and shady schemes who charge high fees, or even vanish with your funds.

5. Legalese and red tape.
Even if you wanted to act, the paperwork alone can be enough to put you off. Pensions are filled with acronyms and fine print, and one wrong move could mean hefty tax penalties.

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What You Can Do With a UK Pension While Abroad

Despite the challenges, there are clear paths you can take to bring order to your pension chaos. But first, understand what’s actually possible:

1. You Can Keep and Draw from UK Pensions

If you’ve got a UK pension (i.e. most workplace and personal or private pensions), you could leave it in the UK and draw from it from age 55 (rising to 57 in 2028).

You’ll usually get:

• 25% tax-free lump sum (based on current UK rules)
• The rest taxable, depending on your local country’s tax treaty with the UK

⚠️ Warnings:

• Not all providers allow drawdown if you’re no longer UK resident
• Some freeze access or require UK-based advisors
• As mentioned, drawing from the UK directly to your overseas account can get complicated tax-wise.

2. You Can Transfer to a QROPS (Act fast but be cautious)

A Qualified Recognised Overseas Pension Scheme (QROPS) lets you move your pension abroad. It can be a good option if:

• You live in a country with a qualifying scheme
• You understand the fees and tax implications
• You know about the recent changes

3. You Can Consolidate Pensions for Easier Management

It’s perfectly legal to combine multiple UK pension pots into a single scheme, such as a SIPP (Self-Invested Personal Pension). This makes things easier to manage and often reduces admin costs.

However, not all SIPP providers accept expat clients, but we can connect you with those who do. If not, they may limit fund access or provide inadequate customer service.

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Why ‘Doing Nothing’ is a Risky Strategy

Too many expats fall into the trap of ignoring their pensions.

After all, it’s easier to put it off than deal with trustee and government forms, currency transfers and advisor fees.

But here’s what can go wrong:

• You lose track of your money. Unclaimed pensions sit idle, eaten by fees or invested poorly.
• You miss growth opportunities. A few thousand pounds a year in extra growth adds up over decades.
• You risk tax penalties. Mishandling transfers or drawdown can cost you thousands.
• You leave your dependents in limbo. If something happens to you and your pensions aren’t in order, your spouse or children may face a nightmare trying to claim anything.

Practical Steps to Take Today

Step 1: Track Down Every Pension You Have

Collate your old documents and get help to find old workplace pensions.

Once you’ve got a list, write down:

• The provider
• Type of pension (defined contribution or final salary)
• Estimated value
• Fees and charges
• Whether they’ll allow access from abroad

Step 2: Assess Whether You Need to Transfer or Consolidate

If you’ve got more than 2–3 pots, it’s probably worth merging. But only after having a professional check:

• Exit fees
• Loss of benefits (e.g. guaranteed annuity rates)
• Whether your chosen provider accepts non-UK residents

Step 3: Review Investment Performance

Many people discover their pensions are sitting in “default” funds — low growth, high fee setups chosen automatically.

A decent advisor will look at:

• Asset allocation (bonds, equities, etc.)
• Set-up, management and product fees
• Currency exposure (if you’ll retire outside the UK)

Even a small improvement in net annual returns — say from 4% to 6% — could mean tens of thousands more in your pension pot over 20 years.

Step 4: Consider a Regulated SIPP Provider

If you’re hands-on and want better control, a SIPP might work. But:

• Stick to FCA-regulated firms
• Avoid platforms based in tax havens
• Double-check they accept expats

Some UK-based SIPPs do cater for expats — but often require you to work with a UK-qualified advisor.

Step 5: Don’t Do It Alone — Speak to a Regulated and Qualfied Advisor

You want someone who:

• Is regulated by a recognised Financial Services Authority
• Has many years of experience working with British expat clients
• Is transparent about their practices, policies and fees
• Doesn’t push products with fat commissions

A good advisor will help you:

• Help track down and assess all your pensions clearly
• Understand your options after the analysis and fact-finding – your retirement plans, risk-profile, beneficiaries etc.
• Avoid nasty tax surprises in both countries (UK and abroad)
• Build a plan that ensures you and your family are covered for generations

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What to Watch Out For (Red Flags)

1. Unreputable and pushy salespeople.
Trusted advisors don’t force meetings or products on people. Their reputations and recommendations mean clients want to work with them.

2. Misunderstanding your objectives (eg. high vs. low risk profile).
Long-term investments usually provide high returns, even with market instabilty, but someone closer to retirement might value lower-risk investments.

3. Pressure to act quickly.
You should never be rushed into a decision about your life savings – but taking the first step is just speaking to someone that could help.

4. High ongoing fees (>1% annually).
These can quietly eat away at your returns. Good advisors will make their fees clear and factor them in to your ROI.

5. Unregulated firms that cannot be verified independently provide due diligence upon request.
If anything goes wrong, you may have no legal comeback.

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In Summary – some real UK expat pension advice

You’ve worked hard, built up pensions across your career, and now live abroad (or plan to) — but that doesn’t mean you need to settle for poor performance, confusing paperwork or dodgy schemes.

Private pensions can work brilliantly for expats — if you take a bit of time to understand what you’ve got, what you need, and who can help you put it all together.

A regulated, experienced financial advisor is your best bet to:

• Gain full visibility and control
• Optimise for long-term growth
• Avoid common tax and legal pitfalls
• Ensure your dependents are looked after

Stop watching your pensions float away. Take action, ask questions, and get proper advice now.

You deserve to retire well — no matter where in the world you live.