Lump sum contribution tax relief question

jimexbox

I'm going to contribute around 16k into an old workplace GPP. The provider state they claim tax relief on direct personal contributions. Although I've read the following on the government site..

Claiming tax relief yourself

In some cases, you need to claim tax relief on pension contributions yourself. You’ll need to make a claim if:

you pay Income Tax at a rate above 20% and your pension provider claims the first 20% for you (relief at source)

your pension scheme is not set up for automatic tax relief

someone else pays into your pension

If you’re paying in an amount greater than £10,000, find out how to claim tax relief.

Anyone made a payment greater than 10k, and tax relief has automatically been claimed back by your provider? Thanks 

badmemory

What does it say about making one payment of £10k and another later of £6k.

Albermarle

jimexbox said:

I'm going to contribute around 16k into an old workplace GPP. The provider state they claim tax relief on direct personal contributions. Although I've read the following on the government site..

Claiming tax relief yourself

In some cases, you need to claim tax relief on pension contributions yourself. You’ll need to make a claim if:

you pay Income Tax at a rate above 20% and your pension provider claims the first 20% for you (relief at source)

your pension scheme is not set up for automatic tax relief

someone else pays into your pension

If you’re paying in an amount greater than £10,000, find out how to claim tax relief.

Anyone made a payment greater than 10k, and tax relief has automatically been claimed back by your provider? Thanks 

Personally I have never heard of that £10K rule, and have happily paid in more than that in the past as a lump sum and the correct tax relief was added.
Some HMRC info is pretty confusing, and that might be he case here, but wait for more comments.

DRS1

If you’re paying in an amount greater than £10,000, find out how to claim tax relief.

Is that some sort of link to another page explaining how to claim tax relief?  If so what does it say is special about a contribution over £10k?

Is it perhaps a warning about the MPAA?

jimexbox

It's quite a recent addition, February this year. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/claim-tax-relief-on-your-private-pension-payments

I've dropped my provider an email. 

DRS1

So that is for people using the online form to claim.  Did they previously require evidence from every online claimant regardless of amount contributed?  So this is watering it down?

QrizB

You said in your opening post:

jimexbox said:

The provider state they claim tax relief on direct personal contributions.

But then you also said:

jimexbox said:

Although I've read the following on the government site..

Claiming tax relief yourself

Is your provider going to be paying you your tax relief? Or are you having to claim it yourself? The £10k thing is only if you're claiming it yourself.

NoMore

DRS1 said:

So that is for people using the online form to claim.  Did they previously require evidence from every online claimant regardless of amount contributed?  So this is watering it down?

AIUI You always had to provide evidence for a >£10k lump sum contribution, if claiming additional relief, lower contributions they just processed with no specific evidence required.

It's all about if you are claiming additional relief, the basic tax relief claimed by the pension is unaffected. It's not clear from the OP if they need to claim or not. Although I guess in most cases a 10k contribution would probably come from someone paying higher rate tax (although not mathematically required, just much more likely).

Albermarle

NoMore said:

DRS1 said:

So that is for people using the online form to claim.  Did they previously require evidence from every online claimant regardless of amount contributed?  So this is watering it down?

AIUI You always had to provide evidence for a >£10k lump sum contribution, if claiming additional relief, lower contributions they just processed with no specific evidence required.

It's all about if you are claiming additional relief, the basic tax relief claimed by the pension is unaffected. It's not clear from the OP if they need to claim or not. Although I guess in most cases a 10k contribution would probably come from someone paying higher rate tax (although not mathematically required, just much more likely).

I claimed higher rate relief on sums greater than £10K many times, and was never once asked to prove anything.

Maybe as @QrizB said , that limit might only apply if you are claiming all tax relief as the provider has not added any.
If I remember from some previous threads that can be a fraught process, as it is unusual and confuses HMRC.

Sarahspangles

jimexbox said:

It's quite a recent addition, February this year. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/claim-tax-relief-on-your-private-pension-payments

I've dropped my provider an email. 

The HMRC gov.uk wording changed in February, at the same time as they rolled out the new online process to reclaim tax on personal pension contributions. This webform only needs to be used for tax relief that isn’t claimed by the pension provider ie Relief at Source.

The webpage wording is a bit opaque. If you need to use the online process then you are prompted to upload evidence if you have contributed more than £10k to the pension(s) you want to reclaim tax. It’s confusing that they also refer to lump sums on the webpage and in the webform, because they don’t define what constitutes a lump sum, it doesn’t seem to relate to the £10k. When you actually get to the bit on the form where you input information, you supply the total amount you contributed and the amount of relief already claimed (if any).

I suppose if you contributed multiple lump sums a year you might use the webform more than once? HMRC would then change your notice of coding as the year went on.