Early cashing-in of Pension?

astro_al

Hi folks. I could use some advice on my pension.

I'm 30 years old and have a few years of good pension contributions. I am about to leave my job in france and return to the UK, where I intend to set up a business of my own.

I think its basically impossible to 'unlock' any money in a pension, but I have seen references to using pension funds to buy commercial property - is this possible (I will need to and the capital would obviously be handy)?

Is there any way to get at my pension fund early? I'm not too worried about losing my pension as I have other arrangements for retirement, and would re-start building a new pension anyway (I have a good few years left).

Any advice on using my pension, or on changing my French investment into a UK-based one would be much appreciated.

Cheers, Al.

jonathon_hart

I don't know about French pensions but UK pensions cannot be unlocked. You can invest in commercial properties either via a SIPP or via a Property fund - however the money used is still part of your pension plan.

In terms of transferring the French pension to the UK you will need to check with the pension administrators if this is possible and if there are any tax implications.