Personal Clients
What is our role?
You will be assigned a Client Portfolio Executive (CPE) who will work closely with you and/or your financial advisor. We will act as your scheme's Pensioneer Trustee and ensure your scheme is administered in line with Revenue rules. We will prepare annual accounts for your scheme and help you with any queries you may have.
What does self-administered mean?
Self-administered means that you can control funding and investment decisions. The administration of the scheme, such as the accounting and processing of investments, is performed by us as the Pensioneer Trustee.
What happens to your existing pension scheme?
You can transfer the value of other pensions to your self-administered scheme. Certain rules cover what type of pension can be transferred, depending on the type of self-administered scheme set up. For example, a Small Self-Administered Scheme (SSAS) can only accept transfers from occupational pensions. Therefore, we would recommend that you consult your financial adviser before taking action.
What can you invest in?
You can invest in a wide variety of investments to suit your personal circumstances. Examples include: cash, government bonds, property, private equity, stocks and shares and tracker bonds. These investments can be sourced from a wide variety of domestic and international institutions.
Are there restrictions on investments?
All investments must comply with Revenue rules. Revenue imposes two primary restrictions to investments.
The first is Self Dealing: Your self-administered scheme cannot sell, lease to, or buy from yourself, your immediate family or your company / employer.
The second is Pride in Possession articles: You cannot invest in certain alternative investments such as fine wines, vintage cars, works of art, yachts, race horses, etc.
All investments within your self-administered scheme must be at arm’s length, transparent and for the sole purpose of providing benefits at retirement. Otherwise, you run the risk of falling foul of Revenue regulations and jeopardising the tax-exempt status of the self-administered scheme.
How much can you contribute?
Your contributions depend on your age and salary. You can use our calculator to get an indicative quotation of your maximum allowable contribution.
What happens if you die before retirement?
In the event of death, the balance of the self-administered scheme can be passed to the estate. There are various options depending on the self-administered scheme you hold. For example, in the case of an Approved Retirement Fund (ARF), it is possible to pass the scheme to the spouse who can carry on the scheme in their name or just pass it to the estate. In the case of a Small Self-Administered Scheme (SSAS), a lump sum of up to four times the salary can be paid to the estate tax-free. In some cases, this may absorb the full value of the scheme. If not, an annual income for the dependants will be purchased with any surplus monies in the fund.
What other services can we provide?
Our focus is on providing tax-efficient pension schemes to help you and your advisor to plan for your future retirement.
We can provide a broad range of products and services to help you achieve your financial objectives.
Our products include: Self-Invested Personal Pensions (SIPP), Personal Retirement Savings Accounts (PRSA), Approved Retirement Funds (ARF) and Small Self Administered Schemes (SSAS).
You can learn more about our other services by going to the ‘Pensions’ section of this website.
What is our role?
We will support you through an Account Manager who will work with you to develop the best solutions for your client’s pension. We will be the Pensioneer Trustee to your client’s self-administered scheme, for which we will seek and maintain Revenue approval. We will administer your client’s self-administered scheme in line with Revenue and Pensions Board rules. We will issue annual reports on the scheme to you and your client and assist you with any queries you may have.
What age can you retire?
The Normal Retirement Age for a SSAS is 60. Early retirement can be taken from 50 to 59 subject to certain restrictions. The restrictions include ceasing employment and selling your shares if you are a company director.
Advisors
What is your role?
You will provide advice to your client on the self-administered pension structure that best suits them, and advise them on their funding and investment options.
What is our role?
We will support you through an Account Manager who will work with you to develop the best solutions for your client’s pension. We will be the Pensioneer Trustee to your client’s self-administered scheme, for which we will seek and maintain Revenue approval. We will administer your client’s self-administered scheme in line with Revenue and Pensions Board rules. We will issue annual reports on the scheme to you and your client and assist you with any queries you may have.
How will we help you?
We will help you by providing access to a dedicated Account Manager, a competitive remuneration structure and a technical support service including, access to pensions and tax consultants and formal seminars throughout the year for Continuous Professional Development. We will provide a marketing support system to include financial product literature, client seminars and formalised planning ideas.
What do you need to sell our product?
You will need to be appropriately regulated by the Financial Regulator or an approved professional body such as the Chartered Accountants Regulatory Board or Association of Chartered Certified Accountants. You will also need to establish an agency with us by completing our Agency Application Form. You will then receive our letter of appointment and Agency Terms & Conditions. You can request a self-administered scheme application pack from your appointed Account Manager.
When are you paid?
This will depend on the pension structure through which your client invests.
What other services do we provide?
Our focus is on providing tax-efficient pension schemes to help advisors plan for their client’s retirement.
We can provide a broad range of services to help you and your clients achieve their financial objectives.
Our services include: Self-Invested Personal Pensions (SIPP), Personal Retirement Savings Accounts (PRSA), Approved Retirement Funds (ARF), Small Self-Administered Schemes (SSAS), Pension Consultancy and Compliance Consultancy.
For details about these other services, please go to the 'Pensions' section of our website.
Do you need more information?
Contact us and we can assign an Account Manager to you who can provide you with more information on our services and products.
Corporate Pensions
How do I appoint a new trustee?
First, refer to your schemes trust deed and establish who has the power under the deed to appoint a new trustee to your scheme. This is often an employer power. A deed of appointment must then be drafted and signed, to formally appoint the new trustee to the scheme. Once the deed is fully executed, the Pensions Board and Revenue will need to be advised of the new appointment.
What differentiates us from our competitors?
• We are independent trustees with no affiliation to any service providers.
• We take a hands-on approach to trusteeship. We will review all claims, transfers, and retirements, etc before finalising.
• We hold at least two trustee meetings yearly. We like to meet with the administrator, investment manager, and employer and member representatives every six months to ensure the smooth running of the scheme. Depending on the size of a scheme or if unusual issues arise (such as a death claim or funding proposals), more frequent meetings may be needed, which we are happy to accommodate.
• We are glad to meet with members or other parties to discuss any matters that arise. We strive to keep the lines of communication open.
• We always look for the practical solution to any issues that arise.
• We have excellent staff with both pensions expertise and years of experience working in the area of trusteeship.
How should decisions be made where there is an independent trustee?
When a decision is to be made, the first point of reference is to the scheme’s trust deed. This will usually clarify who the decision-maker is in that particular circumstance. Where the decision rests with the trustee and the independent trustee is the sole trustee, they should firstly consult with all relevant bodies and, where appropriate, look for expert advice before making a decision. Where the independent trustee acts as co-trustees, they should do the above in conjunction with their co-trustees and then put the decision to a vote. If there is an impasse, the chair of the trustees may often have a casting vote under the deed. The trustees should ensure that a practical solution is decided on. They should also ensure that all decisions are documented along with the reasons for arriving at the decision. This is normally done through minutes.
How do we monitor the scheme administration?
We meet with the scheme administrator at least twice a year and have an administration report completed. This meeting and report cover all the possible scheme events that must or may occur each year. We monitor the procedures in place to make sure they are still working. If they are not, we work with the administrator and employer to find a solution.
How do we ensure the scheme complies with disclosure regulations?
We maintain a log of all our schemes, which records all the key dates and reporting requirement deadlines. This is reviewed at the start of each month. Regular reminders are issued to ensure that reports, statements or valuations are prepared on time and reviewed, for information and compliance purposes. We work with the scheme actuary, administrator, auditor or investment manager to produce these documents.
Can we work with new or existing trustees?
We can act as co-trustees with other trustees. These can be the existing, new or member trustees. We can also provide a director to be appointed to a trustee company established by the employer company.
How do we work with the other advisors to the scheme?
In working with the other service providers to the scheme, such as an investment manager, actuary or administrator, we ensure that procedures are in place for all the regular and ad-hoc events that arise on pension schemes.