Qualifying Recognised Offshore Pension Schemes (QROPS) were established on A-Day in 2006 as a result of major pension rule changes in the UK.
Before April 6, 2006, transferring a UK pension offshore was no easy task.
A transfer could only happen if the country to where an expat was emigrating had a reciprocal arrangement with Britain, and these were few and far between.
On top of that, HM Revenue and Customs had to review and agree the transfer in advance.
The process was stacked against the retirement saver, time consuming and expensive.
Why QROPS were introduced
A-Day changed that for thousands of British expats and foreign workers who had come to and left the country but left behind frozen pension assets.
To comply with European Union rules about the freedom of movement of individuals and the flow of capital, the government had to come up with a system that made portability of pensions around Europe easier for expats.
QROPS were the solution and were established from A-Day 2006.
HMRC publishes a regular list of QROPS pensions worldwide to help providers compliance checks when transferring cash overseas.
QROPS market takes off from start
In April 2006, 246 pensions were available in 21 countries – including two in the UK which were delisted by February 2007.
Ireland, with 66 pensions, and Australia with 63, were the QROPS centres hosting the most pensions – a record they were to keep for many years.
By the end of the year, the number of QROPS worldwide had increased to 360 across 29 financial centres.
The original legislation only allowed QROPS in the European Union, Norway, Liechtenstein or Iceland, India, and the United States or a country with a double taxation agreement with the UK with specific information exchange clauses.
QROPS Year by Year Summary
We review and summarise the QROPS news for each year from the launch of QROPS to now. Click on the below links to read:
QROPS OFFSHORE PENSIONS AFTER 10 YEARS
QROPS 2007 – A Year Of Explosive Growth
QROPS 2008 – HMRC Cracks Down On Rogue Pensions
QROPS 2009 – Gibraltar Tax Problem Rocks Expats
QROPS 2010 – Singapore Legal Challenge Launched
QROPS 2011 – Rooting Out The Rogues
QROPS 2012 – Hundreds of Pensions Delisted
QROPS 2013 – HMRC Humiliated In High Court
QROPS 2014 – Flexible Access On the Way
QROPS 2015 – No One Foresaw The Pension Age Test
QROPS 2016 – The Story So Far… But Not The End
Further QROPS Information and Guidance
For more information about QROPS and the benefits it provides, download the iExpats QROPS Guide or complete the Get Advice form.