People are often apprehensive when it comes to shipping money across borders. (Of course, we’re not talking actual ‘shipping’ here, but you get what we’re saying). It makes us feel a bit like Pablo Escobar, and that one wrong move would get the authorities a-running. Or we simply don’t have the financial savvy to know where to start
Thing is, unless you are a financial guru, it’s not always clear what you should, or are allowed to, do when it comes to international money matters.
But did you know that you can increase your SA pension by more than 20% if you transfer your South African pension to a UK pension?
Sounds a bit unreal, right? Well, John Smith did just that and increased his pension value by 26% in 182 days.
John simply took advantage of the UK tax authorities’ pension incentive. Finglobal.com surrendered his SA retirement policies (R694 720 in total) and paid the compulsory SARS tax withdrawal tax (R123 673).
We then converted the proceeds and transferred £30 867 to his UK bank account. This amount was reinvested in a UK pension fund which, thanks to the UK pension incentive programme, was supplemented with a whopping £7 717. To top it all, John could claim an additional £7 717 tax relief as a 40% taxpayer, which he also invested in his UK pension.
And if you decide to return to SA?
Should you make the great trek back to South Africa later, you’ll be happy to know that your retirement income will be paid out to you, tax free, in hard currency.
Deciding to put down roots somewhere new and novel can be daunting, but it is also an adventure. We want you to enjoy as much of the experience without having to worry about your finances. Your hard-earned money should be yours, no matter where you stay.
Make use of our please call me service if you are interested in transferring your South African Pension to the UK.