Afternoon
Just to through the cat amongst the pigeons re the assumption that your military pension has a x 20 figure to calculate the percentage of the lifetime allowance….. It may, but not for all…
I left the RAF at my 16/38 point in 97 taking a reduced pension, but with a lump sum. This pension went up to the full rate at age 55.
In the meantime, I joined the civil airlines where I initially had a final salary pension which was later moved to a money purchase scheme.
At age 60, I took my pension from the airline final salary scheme. This generated a crystallisation event. This pension was calculated with the x 20 figure equating to approx 48% of the lifetime allowance. However…. as I was already in receipt of my military pension this was calculated with a x 25 figure making up 41.72% of the LTA! I don’t know why, but I have the letter in front of me. This calculation is available via Veterans U.K. Kentigern House Glasgow.
Now, it doesn’t take a genius to work out that I have less than 1% of the LTA available to use on my money purchase scheme. Whilst it my make me feel good looking at it, I would need to be desperate to use it as I would pay an extra 25% tax, ie a minimum of 55% on money taken.
Whilst not destitute, it would be nice to be able to use the pension that I have built up over the last 40 years and not having it sit there waiting for the Government to pounce. And no doubt, there will be more trouble ahead. Forty years ago £1million was a lot. I could have bought 10 big houses. Today, it is not.
Goalpost moving. Now where have I seen that before?
Me