Australia has seen a huge surge in QROPS offshore pensions for expats as the financial year end approaches.
Expats are making the most of their tax allowances by setting up new QROPS before the national financial year ends on June 30.
The rush has seen 38 new QROPS open, while one closed and another had scheme rules amended since April 19, when the last official HMRC QROPS List was published.
Australia now has 1,405 QROPS pensions – the most since the 1653 listed in June 2015, when QROPS rules changed and many offshore pensions around the world lost their QROPS status.
Other countries adding single QROPS were Guernsey, the Isle of Man, Jersey and New Zealand.
Meanwhile, Slovakia joined the QROPS List for the first time with a single pension, becoming the 56th country to join the listing since April 2006, when QROPS were launched.
HMRC QROPS List – By country
| Country | No of QROPS |
| Australia | 1405 |
| Austria | 4 |
| Barbados | 1 |
| Belgium | 3 |
| Bulgaria | 3 |
| Canada | 3 |
| Denmark | 1 |
| EU Institution | 1 |
| Finland | 1 |
| Germany | 8 |
| Gibraltar | 30 |
| Guernsey | 70 |
| Hong Kong | 11 |
| India | 17 |
| Ireland | 72 |
| Isle of Man | 366 |
| Jersey | 73 |
| Kenya | 2 |
| Latvia | 3 |
| Liechtenstein | 1 |
| Luxembourg | 2 |
| Malta | 32 |
| Netherlands | 76 |
| New Zealand | 36 |
| Norway | 1 |
| Slovakia | 1 |
| Sweden | 1 |
| Switzerland | 2 |
| Grand Total | 2226 |
HMRC QROPS List – Top 10 countries
Countries by number of QROPS listed offering the most QROPS
| Country | No of QROPS |
| Australia | 1405 |
| Isle of Man | 366 |
| Netherlands | 76 |
| Jersey | 73 |
| Ireland | 72 |
| Guernsey | 70 |
| New Zealand | 36 |
| Malta | 32 |
| Gibraltar | 30 |
| India | 17 |
| Grand Total | 2177 |
HMRC QROPS List – Changes
QROPS pensions added, amended, or removed in the latest list
| QROPS | Country | Added | Amended | Removed |
| Cygnet Superannuation Scheme | Australia | x | ||
| Ruscojul Super Fund | Australia | x | ||
| A & S Davison Superannuation Fund | Australia | x | ||
| Agnew Superannuation Fund | Australia | x | ||
| AW & JNW Superannuation Fund | Australia | x | ||
| Ausco SMSF Trust | Australia | x | ||
| Bagga Family Super Fund | Australia | x | ||
| Bickell Superannuation Fund | Australia | x | ||
| Bringing Home The Bacon Super | Australia | x | ||
| Carole Gibbons SMSF | Australia | x | ||
| Cawte Family Superannation Fund | Australia | x | ||
| Clifton ROPS Fund | Australia | x | ||
| D and D Beardsmore SMSF Super Fund | Australia | x | ||
| D&M Duffy Super Fund | Australia | x | ||
| DMKK Super Fund | Australia | x | ||
| Donal Ryan Superannuation Fund | Australia | x | ||
| Duffield Superannuation Fund | Australia | x | ||
| Higgins Superannuation Fund | Australia | x | ||
| Jasper Superannuation Fund | Australia | x | ||
| Joanne Jordan Superannuation Fund | Australia | x | ||
| John Jenkins Superfund | Australia | x | ||
| Laurenson Self-Managed Super 2021 | Australia | x | ||
| Mardel Superannuation Fund | Australia | x | ||
| Miller Freedom Super Fund | Australia | x | ||
| N & I Hornby SMSF | Australia | x | ||
| Nightingale Family QROPS Superannuation Fund | Australia | x | ||
| Palfrey Family Super Fund | Australia | x | ||
| PR Thompson Super | Australia | x | ||
| R & J Parsons Superannuation Fund | Australia | x | ||
| R & K Attrill Family Superannation Fund | Australia | x | ||
| Raemers ROPS Fund | Australia | x | ||
| Reay Island Super Fund | Australia | x | ||
| Rosser Family Super Fund | Australia | x | ||
| Sagoya Clarke Super | Australia | x | ||
| Scozzie Pension Pot Super Fund | Australia | x | ||
| Segue Too Superannuation Fund | Australia | x | ||
| SG-2 Super Fund | Australia | x | ||
| Susan Diamond SMSF | Australia | x | ||
| Terry Hunt Superannation Fund | Australia | x | ||
| Toal Super Fund | Australia | x | ||
| Vokoso Super | Australia | x | ||
| Woodburn SMSF | Australia | x | ||
| Winford Investment Superannuation Fund | Australia | x | ||
| Harris Retirement Annuity Trust Scheme | Guernsey | x | ||
| Fluffy Personal Pension Scheme | Isle of Man | x | ||
| Luca Pensions Limited | Jersey | x | ||
| i-Select SMS 19 Fund | N Zealand | x | ||
| NN Tatry-Sympatia, d.d.s., a.s. | Slovakia | x | ||
| Totals: | 46 | 1 | 1 | |
| QROPS listed April 19, 2021: | 2183 | |||
| Net change since April 19, 2021: | 45 | |||
| QROPS listed May 04, 2021: | 2228 | |||
| QROPS country | Added | Removed | ||
| Slovakia | x | |||
| Totals: | 1 | 0 | ||
| Countries with QROPS listed April 19, 2021: | 27 | |||
| Net change since April 19, 2021: | 1 | |||
| Countries with QROPS listed May 04, 2021: | 28 | |||
| The next QROPS list is due on May 15, 2021 |
QROPS List FAQ
The QROPS List is an invaluable free tool for advisers and retirement savers seeking an expat pension.
What the list means and how to use the data is often misunderstood, so here are the answers to some of the most sked questions about QROPS expat pensions.
What is the QROPS List?
The HMRC list tells overseas pension providers and retirement savers transferring funds from a UK pension to a QROPS or between offshore pension providers which schemes qualify for QROPS status.
QROPS providers certify their schemes meet UK offshore pension and tax rules to go on the list, but HMRC warns this does not mean any are approved or certain to be QROPS. Retirement savers should check the latest QROPS list before transferring any money.
QROPS Overseas Transfer Charge
The overseas transfer charge is calculated as 25% of the transfer value of a fund into a QROPS or between QROPS.
For expats living inside the European Economic Area (EEA), countries offering QROPS that are not subject to the overseas transfer charge are:
- Austria
- Belgium
- Bulgaria
- Denmark
- Finland
- Germany
- Ireland
- Latvia
- Liechtenstein
- Luxembourg
- Malta
- The Netherlands
- Norway
- Slovakia
- Sweden
QROPS countries outside the EEA
Countries outside the EEA are subject to the transfer charge if an expat does not live in the same country as the pension is administered – these are:
- Australia
- Barbados
- Canada
- Gibraltar
- Guernsey
- Hong Kong (China)
- India
- Isle of Man
- Jersey
- Kenya
- New Zealand
- South Africa
- Switzerland
Other exceptions to the transfer charge may apply if the overseas scheme is run by an employer or multinational non-government organisation, such as the EU QROPS.
A five-year residence rule may also apply.
Click here for official guidance on the overseas transfer charge
Why does HMRC remove pensions from the QROPS List?
Pensions are delisted for several reasons, including:
- The provider shuts shop
- The last pension member has left the scheme, either by transferring out, dying or exhausting the fund
- Tax avoidance issues
- The scheme stays a QROPS, but the provider invokes confidentiality, so is excluded from the list
Delisting should not suggest wrongdoing by a retirement saver or provider.
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