Check your pension savings annual allowance

HMRC have updated their guidance on the rules for carrying forward the unused pension savings annual allowance, together with a calculator on their website.

For most taxpayers the maximum amount of pension savings that qualifies for tax relief each tax year is £40,000. It is possible to increase this amount by utilising unused relief brought forward from the previous 3 tax years, provided the individual was a member of a pension scheme that year.

The brought forward relief from the earliest year is utilised before later years. Thus for the current tax year 2018/19 the unused relief from 2015/16 may be utilised in addition to the current year relief, followed by 2016/17 and then 2017/18.

2015/16 pension annual allowance lapses on 5 April 2019

To utilise the 2015/16 unused relief any additional pension savings would need to be paid to the pension fund by 5 April 2019, otherwise the relief from 2015/16 will lapse.

Note however that for some taxpayers the method of calculating unused relief for 2015/16 is extremely complicated as the government changed the pension rules part way through the year on 8 July 2015. The amount of pension allowance will depend on the pension input period of your scheme and we can assist you in calculating the 2015/16 relief if you have not already had full relief already.

Tapered pension tax relief for those with high income

For most taxpayers the maximum pension input annual allowance is currently £40,000.

However, from 2016/17 those taxpayers with ‘adjusted income’ over £150,000 and ‘threshold income’ over £110,000 receive a tapered annual allowance.  For those persons affected the allowance tapers by £1 for every £2 that their adjusted income exceeds £150,000 down to a minimum annual allowance of £10,000.

The calculations of ‘adjusted income’ and ‘threshold income’ are complicated and we can assist if you believe that this restriction applies. There are ways in which these figures can be reduced so as to minimize the effect of the restriction.

For further information on Pension Allowances, please contact Alan Rolfe on 023 8046 1200.