The heat has turned down on the Qualifying Recognised Overseas Pension Schemes (QROPS) market in recent weeks.
The latest official HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) QROPS List detailing all the offshore pensions worldwide shows the five new schemes opened and one closed during the past two weeks.
This compares with a net 26 schemes opening in April, although another QROPS list for May is due for publication at the end of the month.
Much of the inactivity is down to a series of bank holidays in the UK and the government’s announcement of a defined contribution pension shake-up which might be injecting uncertainty into the financial decision making of some retirement savers.
New QROPS for Ireland, Australia and Gibraltar
Chancellor George Osborne has promised new legislation for the next tax year, but to date, no firm details have been forthcoming from the Treasury.
The three of the five new QROPS opened in Ireland, while the others are based in Australia and Gibraltar.
One QROPS was suspended from the list in Sweden.
HMRC decline to comment on why individual schemes are delisted.
The latest list again hits a new record for the number of QROPS schemes worldwide – 3,394 across 42 financial jurisdictions.
The next QROPS list is due on June 1, 2014.
| QROPS List - May 15, 2014 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Jurisdiction | Count of QROPS pensions | |
| Values | ||
| May 1, 2014 | May 15, 2014 | |
| Australia | 1390 | 1391 |
| Austria | 11 | 11 |
| Barbados | 2 | 2 |
| Belgium | 22 | 22 |
| Bulgaria | 3 | 3 |
| Canada | 100 | 100 |
| Czech Republic | 3 | 3 |
| Denmark | 8 | 8 |
| European Union | 1 | 1 |
| Finland | 3 | 3 |
| France | 41 | 41 |
| Germany | 56 | 56 |
| Gibraltar | 35 | 36 |
| Greece | 1 | 1 |
| Guernsey | 68 | 68 |
| Hong Kong | 3 | 3 |
| Hungary | 1 | 1 |
| Iceland | 3 | 3 |
| India | 27 | 27 |
| Ireland | 749 | 752 |
| Isle of Man | 236 | 236 |
| Italy | 47 | 47 |
| Jamaica | 2 | 2 |
| Jersey | 136 | 136 |
| Latvia | 1 | 1 |
| Liechtenstein | 3 | 3 |
| Luxembourg | 8 | 8 |
| Malta | 21 | 21 |
| Mauritius | 2 | 2 |
| Netherlands | 108 | 108 |
| New Zealand | 55 | 55 |
| Norway | 8 | 8 |
| Portugal | 23 | 23 |
| Russian Federation | 1 | 1 |
| South Africa | 30 | 30 |
| Spain | 16 | 16 |
| Sri Lanka | 1 | 1 |
| Sweden | 8 | 7 |
| Switzerland | 138 | 138 |
| Trinidad & Tobago | 2 | 2 |
| Turkey | 3 | 3 |
| USA | 14 | 14 |
| Total: | 3390 | 3394 |
| Source: HMRC | ||
