QROPS, LTA and BCE

JasonPr

Let's say I have a SIPP in the UK with £400k in it. Let's further assume I move away from the UK this tax year to another EEA country. I transfer my SIPP to a QROPS in the EEA (e.g. Malta). This is a benefit crystallisation event (BCE). The £400k are now tested against the 1.03m LTA and I'm below (39% of LTA) so there's no fee to pay. Let's assume I'm staying in the EEA country for 5 years so there's no fee/penalty to pay for the transfer out of the UK.

Let's further assume I move back to the UK in the future (after 5 years in the EEA). I leave the QROPS where it is. I start building up a new pension in the UK and eventually draw down that pension in the UK.

How much can that pension be before I hit the LTA? Do I get 100% of the LTA or will the BCE from the QROPS transfer be taken into account and I only have access to 61% of the LTA in effect at the time of my next BCE (100%-39%)?

Aegis

There are no further tests against the lifetime allowance for a QROPS. Post-transfer, the growth is not considered at all. However, the LTA you have already used when transferring is gone permanently.

ffacoffipawb

LTA is currently £1.055 million, every little extra helps.