Divorce payments deducted from pension before income tax

jaypee_john

I receive my first Teachers Pension payment in a couple of days time and as a part of a divorce settlement 15 years ago I have to pay my ex wife a monthly allowance out of this. I was shocked to find that I have to pay income tax on the full pension and that the deductions payable to my ex wife are taken out after tax has been paid. Inland Revinue say that this is correct and that there is nothing that I can do about it; I cannot even claim it as an outgoing.
Can anyone offer any help on this as it seems unjust?

SallyG

If you're paying your ex-wife court ordered "spousal maintenance" /periodical payments from your pension this goes to her tax-paid.
She would have to pay tax if the court had issued a pension earmarking/attachment order for payments to be made by the pension scheme direct to your ex-wife.
In either case her pension payments will cease when you do which is why pension sharing was introduced in 2000.