Dave Thornton

This must surely be the most boring subject, but I want to know if anybody has been able to get back any AVCs (less tax) that they have paid into a company pension scheme.

I've got about £7,000 in mine and I want to use it for other investments rather than have it tied up for another 28 years.

I'm awaiting the answer from my Pensions dept, but I would like to know what the situation is with most schemes.

Thanks in advance for any help given.

camk

I think once they are in then thats it. The only way to get it back is to leave the scheme and cash in(must be in it less than 2 years) and get the money.
If you've been in the scheme more than 2 years then your stuffed as you can then only transfer it, if less than 2 years then there is a chance.
However remember they'll immediately take the tax off it so you'll not get everything you put in as it was tax exempt when you put it in. Will you other investment quickly make up that 40% difference ? Think carefully about that.

Regards
Cammy

GM

Dave,

You can only get a refund of your contributions if you leave the scheme after less than two years. So you'd have to opt-out of the scheme which would mean you wouldn't accrue any benefits in the future unless your employer felt inclined to let you back in. You can't just take a refund of your AVC, you'd have to take a refund of any compulsory cotributions you had paid as well. That would mean you'd lose your employer's contibutions as well - they'd go back to the employer or would be pploughed back into the scheme as premiums for other people. If you do take a refund it would be the scheme trustees who have to pay the tax at a special rate of 20% - they will reduce your refund by the amount of the tax though!

If you've been in the scheme more than two years (even if you haven't paid the AVC for that long) I'm afraid there isn't anything you can do except wait patiently!

GM