Life is full of different events and each day brings something new. As a business owner or working professional, when these events happen, you may not be aware that they could have a major impact on your pension funds. These are savings that you’re working hard to grow over the years, so you need to know that it’s secure!

To provide you with tips that can prepare you for these major life events, Portafina has compiled a list of a couple of events, and how they could potentially affect your pension.

Passing Away

Many people don’t like to talk about death because it can seem like a scary and unpleasant reality. However, one thing you do not want to happen is if your pension not being shared in the way that you want after you die. To keep this from happening, contact your pension provider and find out whether your funds can be given to your loved ones in the event of your death. It could be distributed amongst friends, family or donated to one of your favourite charities.

Bankruptcy

Unforeseen circumstances in your personal finances or business could lead to you having to declare bankruptcy. This isn’t something that anyone hopes for, but sometimes it happens. It may be a relief to know that your pensions aren’t classified as an asset so if this happens to you, the receiver can’t access your money. However, it may be wise to discuss how bankruptcy could affect you making contributions to and accessing your pension funds in the future.

Moving Abroad

In case you’ve ever played around with the idea of moving abroad once you retire, it’s essential that you look at the clauses of your pension plan first. This is necessary because it could affect your ability to qualify for tax relief. It would be very disappointing if this happened and as a result, you got less retirement money than you were anticipating.

Changing Employers

It isn’t uncommon for people to have more than one job during their working years. However, you should know that changing jobs doesn’t mean that your pension is negatively affected. You should still have access to your money although you’ll no longer receive contributions from your past employer.

On the other hand, you could transfer your scheme to the one you have with your new employer as if you’re earning over £10,000 annually and are over the age of 22; they are required to enroll you in a new scheme. As of April 2019, the minimum total contribution is 8%, and both you and your employer have to contribute. If you want the latest on pension developments, ensure you’re following Portafina’s Facebook page.

Illness

Another significant life event that could happen at any time is you falling seriously ill. In this case, you should be able to access your pension funds although the minimum age for most policies is typically 55. However, in the case of state pensions, there isn’t usually an exception to the rule.

Preparing and planning for retirement is a crucial step to take. Your pension is an integral element of a happy, comfortable retirement. If you have any questions or would like to find out more, you can visit Portafina Discovery a handy resource hub. They also have lots of information on their social channels, YouTube, @Portafina UK, and on LinkedIn.