Regular reviews keep your pension on track

By Marcus Pilkington, chartered financial planner, Pareto Financial Planning

How your future looks will ultimately be determined by having the right vehicle in place for your retirement.

As you approach retirement and start thinking about when and how to take your money, it’s a good idea to check what pensions you have and what they might give you.

The rules around pensions are continuously changing, which means it’s essential to receive regular professional advice on how to build up and invest your pension effectively.

Pension contributions are tax efficient for both employees and companies. Employees receive tax relief on their contributions, while an owner-director can use a pension to extract profit more tax efficiently.

Owner-director’s contributions are deductible as a business expense and reduce the company’s profits for corporation tax purposes, saving 19 per cent. For owner-managed businesses, pensions also offer the potential to purchase commercial property via a SIPP or SSAS, to further increase tax efficiency as there is no capital gains tax on growth in value of the property and rental income is tax free and doesn’t count towards the annual allowance.

Whether building a retirement strategy with you from the start or reviewing your existing arrangements, Pareto Financial Planning can provide professional advice to help guide you through the process to defining your retirement goals and recommending a tailored strategy to meet your individual needs that will be flexible enough to adapt as your life changes. This includes working with your professional advisers to put a plan in place to achieve long-term goals that include exit and/or succession planning.