Shell Pensions
SHELL OVERSEAS CONTRIBUTORY PENSION FUND (SOCPF)
In 2017 we first heard of the SOCPF, a Bermuda-domiciled pension administered in London. A Shell Pensions scheme member approached us to provide advice, as they were struggling to get the comfort required to act on advice provided elsewhere. This included a lack of clarity on costs and fees. With a typical engineer’s brain (apologies for any stereotyping), the required level of detail in areas such as protection, the money trail, and jurisdiction of the pension meant we were ideally placed with our experience of Overseas Pensions and with us being regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority to help.
Our involvement in this scheme has grown organically through client referrals. As of November 2021, we have advised on the transfer of over £15 million from Shell Pensions. We have recommended that some clients keep their Shell Pensions.
Many of our clients have been very high profile at Shell, and almost all want the same level of detailed and transparent advice. Most clients are UK nationals who are now living overseas, and some plan to return to the UK.
POTENTIAL TRANSFER BENEFITS
Any potential benefits of transfer vary from client to client based on their individual circumstances such as current and future residency, original nationality, as well as asset and income requirements.
Possible benefits include:
INCREASED FLEXIBILITY OF PENSION WITHDRAWALS
A MORE TAX EFFICIENT RETIREMENT
SUCCESSION PLANNING & SUPERIOR DEATH BENEFITS & OPTIONS
AVOIDING CURRENCY RISK ON PENSION WITHDRAWALS
Benefits need to be balanced against the loss of a Guaranteed Income. This means a transfer may not be suitable for some individuals.
TRANSFER CONSIDERATIONS
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The importance of your retirement of Guaranteed Shell Pension Income, in relation to your retirement income and/or lump sum requirements, other assets and income sources.
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Your current and future residency plans include the timing of residency changes.
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Your domicile status.
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Whether you are an active or deferred member of one or more Shell Pension Schemes, and how the schemes interact.
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How a transfer may meet your overall needs and circumstances, balancing the loss of any guarantees (if applicable) with the importance to you of avoiding currency risk, overall taxation, pension flexibility, longevity and benefits on death.
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A detailed analysis of the transfer value offered by a UK pension scheme (Defined Benefit Pensions).
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If a transfer is suitable which option may be more beneficial in terms of product type (may be more than one), location of the product, product provider and investment options?
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Any secondary advice outside of a pension (if advice is to withdraw a significant sum for taxation purposes).
BENEFITS OF USING CRADLE
A detailed analysis of all relevant factors to assess the suitability of a transfer, and to help you make a fully informed decision.
Initial meetings explained a smooth process.
We provide you with an independent analysis of Defined Benefit Pensions via 3rd party videos before we meet with you. This allows you to understand the importance of any guarantees you may give up.
100% transparency on all fees including advice, pension product charges, currency exchange (if applicable) and investment-related costs.
No commission, which leads to product recommendation bias.
FCA Regulated in the UK.
Reduced administration burden on most transfers to Australia.
100% transparency on all fees including advice, pension, currency exchange and investment related costs (in UK and Australia).
No commission, which in our experience often leads to bias in product recommendations.
FCA Regulated in the UK.
A full detailed advice report taking into consideration the key points in the above section. This report contains no surprises and reaffirms all previous correspondence.
Technical and practical expertise in a host of solutions across different jurisdictions, product types and providers.
Understanding the implications of inheritance tax, and other taxes if planning to return to the UK (even if not resident).
Access to an innovative hybrid solution that balances Inheritance Taxes with Flexibility and Income Tax Issues, which is of particular interest to UK nationals.
We do not participate in any of the practices below.
LET THE BUYER BEWARE
Unethical Practices
Pension transfers (and the subsequent investment of these funds) are an area that has been targeted heavily by scammers and those using unethical practices. While the FCA has tried to crack down there are still companies finding loopholes with the intention of making quick and easy money at the expense (often catastrophically) of the policyholders.
There are often some similarities in behaviour which tends to result in very poor outcomes. These include:
Advice companies having offices in less regulated locations such as Hong Kong or United Arab Emirates.
These funds are generally commission-paying (undisclosed) and are held within the offshore bonds market. These funds normally have a “good story” behind them but are usually outside most clients’ risk tolerance. They often result in a large if not total loss of funds and liquidity problems if withdrawals are required.
A lack of detailed analysis of your circumstances, objectives, or risk tolerance. This includes what you are giving up, how your income will be achieved, or any cash flow modelling of your income and assets to help achieve your goals.
Products such as “Offshore Life Assurance Bonds” are being advised within the new pension scheme, to pay high levels of often undisclosed commissions (typically between 8% and 10%), resulting in very high unnecessary product fees and exit penalties.
A lack of understanding of key issues surrounding areas such as UK Inheritance Taxes, and often false claims as to when UK IHT may or may not apply.
An inability to explain or disclose all costs or protection issues.
Our Services
Australian Transfers
Our core business, Australian Pension Transfers are very much our main area of specialism. This is enhanced by working with like-minded and carefully selected partners in Australia to provide a comprehensive end-to-end solution.
New Zealand Transfers
For the right individual under the right circumstances, the New Zealand Pension Transfers could be beneficial. Transfers to Australia and New Zealand are our core business and very much our main area of specialism. This is enhanced by working with like-minded and carefully selected partners in both countries to provide a comprehensive end-to-end solution.
Shell Pensions
Many of our clients have been very high profile at Shell, and almost all want the same level of detailed and transparent advice. Most clients are UK nationals who are now living overseas, and some plan to return to the UK.
UK Resident Services
At Cradle Overseas Pensions, we are committed to providing a comprehensive range of services tailored specifically for UK residents. Our expertise extends to a variety of financial planning areas, ensuring that your financial needs are met with the utmost professionalism and care.
QROPS Pension Reviews
If you have previously transferred from a UK Pension to a Qualifying Recognised Pension Scheme (QROPS), we offer a review service to ascertain if the current QROPS is working for you or whether there may be better alternatives. Alternatives could include a full pension transfer or simply changing the structure of costs and investments within an existing plan.
Self Invested Personal Pensions (SIPPs)
SIPPs, or Self Invested Personal Pensions, offer a flexible way for individuals to manage their retirement savings, providing greater control over investment choices. These pensions are an ideal solution for those who seek to actively engage with and tailor their retirement investments to better align with their long-term financial goals.
OUR MISSION
To achieve the best and most suitable outcome for our clients, whereby both parties are making fully informed decisions, and in a manner where our clients feel at ease through the entire process and comfortable enough to ask us anything whether they feel it is relevant to their financial situation or not.