At Brite Advisors, we have many clients currently holding UK State Pension assets and with this comes inevitable questions surrounding accessibility – such as:
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Can I transfer to the USA?
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Can we cash out and move into Dollars?
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Do I need a UK bank account?
As well as many others. We’ll try to shed light on these key questions, so you have the information to the make most of your UK State Pension.
1) How to find the value of your UK State Pension
The UK Government has provided an online portal where you can find out more information about your state pension at www.gov.uk/check-state-pension. In order to use this portal, you will need to have or create a ‘Government Gateway’ account, and have your your NI number UK passport details handy. In the absence of any of the above information, you can create a ‘gov.uk verify’ account using a UK address and a Passport / Driving License.
2) What is the maximum I am entitled to?
If you reached retirement age before April 6th 2016, you are entitled to £129.20 *https://www.gov.uk/state-pension*
If you reached retirement age on/after April 6th 2016, you are entitled to £168.60 *https://www.gov.uk/new-state-pension*
The actual amount will vary depending on your National Insurance records, while this may also be higher through Additional State Pension (also known as SERPS) or where claimants defer.
3) What is the Triple-Lock and how does this benefit me?
Triple-lock was designed to protect your state pension against any inflation erosion and means your state pension will increase annually at a rate from whichever of the following is highest:
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Earnings, the average percentage growth in wages (in Great Britain)
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Inflation, the percentage growth in prices in the UK as measured by the Consumer Prices Index (CPI)
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2.5%
4) Do I need a UK bank account?
No. It can be paid into either your US bank account or a UK account and this can, in addition to your personal account, be paid into a joint account or someone else’s account with your permission.
https://www.gov.uk/state-pension-if-you-retire-abroad
5) Can I transfer this to the US?
You cannot transfer your state pension to the US, however, the Totalisation Agreement between the US and various foreign countries allows for credits based upon your foreign NI contributions to apply to your social security. We recommend you consult a tax advisor for more information on how this may affect your tax liability.
https://www.ssa.gov/international/agreements_overview.html
Brite Advisors USA can help you with cross border tax and UK pension advice. Please contact us for more information.
Where to find us
12 East 49th Street, 11th Floor, New York NY 10017, United States of America.
Tel: +1 646 891 5990.
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