Compare Self-Invested Personal Pensions
Get your money working harder with one of these Self-Invested Personal Pension plans that accepts transfers from other providers.
Minimum Investments
£100 & £25 per month
Transfers In-Specie
Contributions and Transfers
Invest In
Shares, Bonds, Funds, PIBs and more
Managed By
Online, Phone and AppExpert research, award winning app, invest in 1000s of funds from all the major fund providers with discounts available. No dealing fees apply
Your exact charges and fees will depend on your particular circumstances. Capital at risk. If in doubt, we recommend you speak with a qualified Independent Financial adviseModel.
Minimum Investments
£25 per month
Transfers In-Specie
Contributions and Transfers
Invest In
Shares, Bonds, Funds, PIBs and more
Managed By
Online and AppNo setup or transfer in fees, Low trading costs and no exit fees either.
Your exact charges and fees will depend on your particular circumstances. Capital at risk. If in doubt, we recommend you speak with a qualified Independent Financial adviseModel.
Minimum Investments
NA
Transfers In-Specie
NA
Invest In
Funds
Managed By
Online and AppPensionbee will do the hard graft to amalgumate all your pensions in one place and allow you to invest in a range of funds from top fund managers including BlackRock and Legal & General.
Your exact charges and fees will depend on your particular circumstances. Capital at risk. If in doubt, we recommend you speak with a qualified Independent Financial adviseModel.
Minimum Investments
£1000 or £25 per month
Transfers In-Specie
Transfers only
Invest In
Shares, Bonds, Funds, PIBs and more
Managed By
Online and PhoneWhich? recommended platform, Wide range of investment choices, expert guidance available and competitive charging structure.
Your exact charges and fees will depend on your particular circumstances. Capital at risk. If in doubt, we recommend you speak with a qualified Independent Financial adviseModel.
Minimum Investments
Annual charge: £205
Transfers In-Specie
Contributions and Transfers
Invest In
Shares, FX, CFDs, ETFs and Bonds
Managed By
Online and PhoneIG offers 2 SIPPs with the opportunity to invest in 12,000 shares from the majority of the world's major exchanges. No minimum investment, but annual platform charge makes this platform appropriate for those with large pension pots.
Your exact charges and fees will depend on your particular circumstances. Capital at risk. If in doubt, we recommend you speak with a qualified Independent Financial adviseModel.
Minimum Investments
£10,000
Transfers In-Specie
Transfers
Invest In
Shares, Funds, FX, ETFs and Bonds
Managed By
Online and PhoneSOXO offers 2 SIPPs with the opportunity to invest in 12,000 shares from the majority of the world's major exchanges.
Your exact charges and fees will depend on your particular circumstances. Capital at risk. If in doubt, we recommend you speak with a qualified Independent Financial adviseModel.
Minimum Investments
£50
Transfers In-Specie
Inspecie and Transfers
Invest In
Shares, Funds anf ETFs
Managed By
Self-Select or ManagedFunds from 100+ different providers with discounts including Fidelity with award winning guidance. Fees from £45 on under £7500 or 0.35% on up to £250,000 across all your Fidelity accounts.
Your exact charges and fees will depend on your particular circumstances. Capital at risk. If in doubt, we recommend you speak with a qualified Independent Financial adviseModel.
A pension is a long-term saving scheme which you can usually access from age 55. You contributions are boosted by tax relief, or a refund of the tax you've paid, and there are plenty of other benefits.
Typically, you cannot withdraw any money from your pension until you reach at least age 55. The main exception is if you have a terminal illness where doctors have determined you will not live for more than 12 months. In this case, you can draw your entire pension as a one-off lump sum.
Essentially, the higher the tax rate you pay, the bigger the benefit of a pension, as you receive tax relief at your personal rate. So if you pay £100 into your pension, the cost to you is only £80 as a basic-rate taxpayer, or £60 as a higher-rate taxpayer.
Assuming there hasn’t been a fundamental change to the tax system and your only income in retirement is your pension, you may also pay less tax overall. That's because your overall income will be lower.
The full state pension - based on your National Insurance Contribution (NIC) record - currently pays out £129.20 a week, or £6,718.40 per year and will rise rise to approximately £160 per week by 2040. For most people, this will not be enough for a comfortable retirement.
Most commentators agree that a good rule of thumb is that you should pay in approximately half your age as a percentage from when you start paying into your pension.
In other words, if you start paying into a pension at 20, you should pay an average of 10% of your salary into your pension throughout your working life, 15% if you start at 30, or 20% if you start at 40.
A workplace pension is provided by your employer as a way of saving towards retirement. Your employer will automatically enrol you into its scheme, provided you:
At least age 22
Not yet at state pension age
Earn in excess of £10,000
Normally work in the UK under a contract of employment
If you meet these criteria, you will have a 6 week window in which you can choose to opt out of the pension scheme, and any contributions paid will be refunded. After that point, you can choose to cease membership, but any contributions will not be returned.
Provided you meet the auto enrolment rules, the minimum that should be paid into your pension is 8% of qualifying earnings. Of this, your employer must pay in a minimum of 3%, with any difference being made up by you.
Final Salary or Defined Benefit pension schemes have mostly been withdrawn in the private sector as they have been consistently underfunded and placed a heavy, ongoing burden on businesses.
Defined Benefit schemes have their own formula which depends on a number of factors. They pay out a predetermined percentage of income to their members at retirement, based on the number of years served, an accrual rate and a percentage of income earned each year.
A Self Invested Pension Plan (SIPP) is a specific type of do-it-yourself pension. You can choose from a wide range of asset classes depending on which you think will provide greatest long-term growth. SIPPs may also be provided on an advised basis, although this will be more expensive. decisions.
Over time, the cost of pension administration has fallen. Workplace pensions are restricted to charging no more than 0.75% of the fund as an annual management charge. Older stakeholder schemes are restricted to charging no more than 1% of the fund value. Older personal pensions may have higher charges.
If you are in a final salary scheme, you should always get advice before thinking about moving your pension. You may lose valuable benefits. However, if you have money in a personal pension or a workplace defined contribution (or 'money purchase') scheme, whether you move depends on your preference.
There are a variety of factors to consider, such as performance, where your pension will be invested, costs involved and ease of administration.
Yes, you can choose to move your pension from one scheme when you want to. But check for any exit charges.
After retirement, you can buy an annuity (guaranteed income for the rest of your life) or drawdown an income from your pension investments over time. Or you can choose a combination of approaches to producing retirement income. Whichever approach you choose, you can take 25% of your pension as a tax-free lump sum at retirement.
If you're unsure what will be the best option for you, we recommend you get independent financial advice from a qualified adviser.
An annuity is a financial product that you can buy at retirement with all or a portion of your pension pot. It will guarantee to pay out a specified amount of income per year for the rest of your life. The older you are when you buy an annuity, the less it will cost you to achieve the same income. Similarly, if you suffer poor health and have a limited life expectancy, the cost will be lower.
Drawdown is the term used to describe using your pension investments to draw payments for yourself.
Unlike an annuity that is guaranteed to pay out a certain level of income until your death, drawdown income can run out if you miscalculate how long you'll live or the markets do not perform as well as you'd hoped.
If you're unsure what will be the best option for you, we recommend that you seek regulated independent financial advice.
There are a variety of ways to fund retirement, so possibly, yes. If you've paid off your mortgage or the majority of a mortgage, renting out your home or doing equity release could also be a way of paying for retirement. But, ideally, it's wise not to rely on a single asset for retirement. If you're unsure how to fund retirement, we recommend that you seek independent financial advice.
At retirement, you can withdraw 25% of your total pension pot tax free. However, it may be wise to take financial advice before doing so. Remember, once money is withdrawn from your pension, you do not get the benefit of tax free investment growth and you want to ensure you manage your retirement income effectively.
No, you will not pay NI on your pension income.
Yes, your income tax will be exactly the same as if your income was from an employer. So it will be subject to the the relevant tax rate, and have a personal allowance.
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