pensions

[stevewool]

anyone took out early retirement, if so how did you do it and also i know you cannot claim your pension till you come of age but what percentage do you lose each year you retire early, i have look at the goverments page but it is a little confussing, i am in know rush, still have another 7 years work till i think i can retire early:xxgrinning--00xx3:

[lastlid]

anyone took out early retirement, if so how did you do it and also i know you cannot claim your pension till you come of age but what percentage do you lose each year you retire early, i have look at the goverments page but it is a little confussing, i am in know rush, still have another 7 years work till i think i can retire early:xxgrinning--00xx3:
Optional from 55 yrs of age onwards. I did it. Its quite complex and is worth having a chat with whoever is your pension provider. Lots of different options including tax free lump sums.

[stevewool]

thanks for such a quick response, wow 55 if i did not have 5 kids , 2 marriages and half my works pension taken off me i may be looking at that age, but hey, life goes on:)

[lastlid]

You can draw it at 55 and continue working, if you want to.

[Terpe]

anyone took out early retirement, if so how did you do it

Yes, I did that 3 times.
Once in Japan at 55 yrs old with a 'normal' retirement age of 60 yrs
Once in UK from my 'Main' company at 55 yrs old with a normal retirement age of 65 yrs
Once again in UK from Civil Service at 58 yrs old with a normal retirement age of 60yrs

So you can see that each pension is slightly different. The 'normal' retirement age can vary. You would need to check with your pension provider to find out the earliest date you can retire and also what age they term 'normal retirement'

If you want to proceed with early retirement you would need to discuss with your pension provider and also your employer.


i know you cannot claim your pension till you come of age but what percentage do you lose each year you retire early.....

I'm not sure what you mean about cannot claim but, if your pension scheme allows you to take early retirement at say 55yrs and you are 55yrs or older then you can retire with a pension that is immediately payable.
The trick is when it comes to how much you will lose.
Each pension scheme has a different % per year taken early that is used to reduce the payments.

In one of my pensions I retired at 55 yrs but my normal retirement age was 65 yrs so I lost 10 years x the % reduction. That reduced rate applies for the complete term of the pension. Although one important part (widows benefit) did not reduce at all.
That widows pension is something else to think about.

So here again you must discuss with the pension provider.

The government page will not give much info. Only about state pension details.
as you know the state pension for men currently starts paying at 65 yrs of age.
It also stops immediately you're gone, without any possibility of passing the benfits on.

[stevewool]

thanks terpe, thats what confussed me about the state pension, i saw the % reduction, but could not work it out, like you say i will get in touch with my works first, thanks again

[lastlid]

My understanding is that the absolute minimum is 55, to qualify for a tax free lump sum. I got the impression this is "universal".

[Terpe]

thanks terpe, thats what confussed me about the state pension, i saw the % reduction, but could not work it out, like you say i will get in touch with my works first, thanks again

State pension is not the same as a private/occupational pension scheme.
The state pension has seen quite a few changes in recent years, and there's more changes to come.
Currently the amount of state pension you get depends on the number of 'qualifying' years that you have contributed. In principle it takes 30years of contributions to get the full amount of state pension. Anything less than 30 yrs will mean a reduction of the amount you get.
Unfortunately, you have to wait until state pension age before making any claim.

Maybe you already this stuff steve, but just added it in case other members were not sure.
Nobody worries about pensions until they get to a certain age :D

[lastlid]

I was of course referring to private pension plans.....

[Terpe]

On the subject of State Pensions.
You can actually delay claiming it and currently find advantages in doing that.

For each full year that is defered the pension gets increased by around 10%
Don't forget there is no tax paid or due on state pension until you actually get it if your income is high enough. So that 10% enhancement during the first year is tax free.
After 12 months delay you can claim it as a lump sum payment. (tax paid of course)

Once you decide to take the pension any enhancement you received continues to be paid for the rest of your life.

[Terpe]

Another interesting topic with pensions (for those thinking of a retirement in the Philippines) is that of a “Double Taxation Agreement” that exists between the UK and Philippines.

Essentially this means that most receivable pension payments should only be taxed once if you’re living in a country which has a double taxation agreement with UK. (ie Philippines)

Normally, any pension payments above individual personal allowances will be taxed at source in the UK but, if you are resident abroad, and you inform HMRC that your pension will be taxed in your country of residence, then HMRC will authorise payment of your pension without deduction of tax.

Now here's the really interesting bit. Currently income from pensions are taxed at 0% in Philippines. :xxgrinning--00xx3: :D

[stevewool]

i have read that terpe, lotsof intresting things has been said and as always, have to think long and hard, still a long way to go till i am 60 early retirement

[Arthur Little]

anyone took out early retirement ...

Yes, Steve ... I did ... a year and a half after the death of my first wife. Fast approaching the age of 50 - with my two kids already grown-up and self~sufficient, and me going nowhere career~wise - I thought "to hell with the 'rat race' ... I've had ENOUGH ... it's time to do what I want to do with the rest of MY life"! And I have NEVER regretted this decision :nono-1-1: ... not once!

[Arthur Little]

... so how did you do it?

Well ... :anerikke: I guess I was fortunate. Leaving school at 16 1/2, I joined the Perth Head Office staff of 'General Accident' which had a non~contributory pension scheme. But then ... in my early 20s ... I moved to a superannuated clerical post with the National Coal Board - all pension rights being transferrable to the former *Tayside Regional Council - with *whom I was ultimately employed in Social Work Administration from 1975 to 1993.

So ... whenever the opportunity to retire presented itself in the run-up to the last Local Authority reorganisation scheduled for 1996, I grabbed it with both hands. :Jump:

[stevewool]

thats the best way to think, grab it with both hands, all our planning has started so as long as work is here and our health too, i cannot see a problem with the plans,

[Terpe]

thats the best way to think, grab it with both hands, all our planning has started so as long as work is here and our health too, i cannot see a problem with the plans,

Don't take this as negative steve, but if you are serious you should start to consider the best ways of minimising exchange rate risks. Remember exchange rates are both + & - .
Just trying to help steve. It may sound a small thing, but it can very easily become a major issue. If you rely totally on income from a 'foreign-source' (ie UK) you better be sure it's robust enough to weather all storms.

[Arthur Little]

Oh ... that :yeahthat: [#14] wasn't the end of my working life. :NoNo: ... I'd only been "retired" for a few months when ... along came the chance of a filing clerk/mail room assistant/cum telephonist's role with the old DHSS. Boring as :censored: ... but with the fortnightly wage - together with a substantial lump sum and modest occupational pension from the Council - I was doing alright. Indeed, the whole caboodle enabled me to take two annual holidays abroad while it lasted. There followed a period with Asda ... where, as a Security Assistant, I even managed to gain the firm's presigious 100% 'Mystery Shopper Award' for Customer Service on three separate occasions. (I'm not boasting ... simply being honest! ;)).

Finally, as I approached sixty, my minister asked if I'd like a wee job as Weekend Church Officer (Kirk Beadle in Scotland) and I accepted. Unwisely, as it turned out! Why? Because, like other, similarly large organisations, churches (probably more than most!!) have an uncanny knack of attracting idle gossip and *bitchiness (there's no better *word for describing what goes on among would~be "Christians" at times!!!).

3 1/2 years of tholing that sort of behaviour from some sharp~tongued old dears :oldlady::oldlady::oldlady: ... who'd known me for three decades at least, before then ... proved too much and, in the end, I happily resigned ... even though I continue to attend Sunday worship at the same place.

[stevewool]

some things are out of our control, but hopefully from know until then, we should be able to save and pit money were we want ,Also terpe what ever you have to say is never negative, its good commen sense

[Terpe]

some things are out of our control, but hopefully from know until then, we should be able to save and pit money were we want ,Also terpe what ever you have to say is never negative, its good commen sense

Thanks steve,
My point is that although the exchange rate fluctuations themselves are not under your control, how you manage the outcomes is, and that is your choice.
Food for thought steve.