Pension allowances Questionnaire FAQs

Why might I need a pension allowances analysis report?

There are three key reasons:

1)  to know whether your current contributions may exceed the new limits for your pensions (tapered) Annual Allowance

2)  to know whether your current pension fund size and projected size may exceed your pensions Lifetime Allowance

3)  to find out your options to reduce or eradicate any tax charges that could otherwise arise through inaction

The Report provides you with an analysis of the impact that your accrued pension funds and ongoing contribution rates have on your current and impending permitted pension allowances.  From the analysis, your Report will show you the effect of the different options open to you, so that you can make a fully informed decision on your preferred contributions strategy to maximise pension as much as is tax-efficient and permitted and to minimise taxation.
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How confidential is my personal information?

All personal information is submitted via SSL online links, which are encrypted to the standard 128MB.  The use of your information will be exclusively by Patterson-Mills and none of the details you enter will be shared with any outside party, which includes your Employer.

Furthermore, Patterson-Mills is bound under the comprehensive UK rules relating both to the Data Protection and the Financial Services & Markets Acts.

What information will I need to complete the questionnaire?

You will be asked about the last known values of your pension funds.  Although you will not need to provide any information aboout your Dentsu Aegis Network Aegon fund, as we can access this confidentially with Aegon, we do need from you the fund values of any other of your pension investment funds / plans.

We also need to know any figures (however old!) for final salary type pensions (expressed as an annual pension amount).

In addition, as the new rules dictate, we need to know about your other taxable income, which may include rental income profits, consultancy fees or other earned income from work outside of your Dentsu Aegis Network employment, interest, dividends and trust income, as applicable.  These income amounts can adversely affect your pensions Annual Allowance and could unwittingly cause you a tax charge, hence it is important to check these figures too.

Your answers may cause us to need some additional information for Annual Allowance purposes only and, if so, we would be in touch with you swiftly to discuss.

Completion of the questionnaire has been made straightforward via our secure online link provided in the email you have received from us.
Click here to go to straight to the pension allowances questionnaire

How long will it take to receive my Report?

We are aiming to complete all Reports as soon as possible.  Depending on the information you provide in the questionnaire, we may need to query certain things with you. We would therefore encourage you to complete the online questionnaire as soon as possible, to ensure you have the maximum time possible to make any changes (down or up) to your contributions.

Can I prevent a tax charge retrospectively, for example next year?

No, with one exception.  If you exceed your pensions Annual Allowance, you may have eligible historical contribution allowances which, under certain circumstances, could be used to prevent what would otherwise be a tax charge.  In terms of the Lifetime Allowance, certain methods exist to protect higher amounts than the 2016/17 that has been introduced, but you need to have ceased making contributions to be able to use this protection before 5 April 2016.

Once I receive the Report, will any further advice be available concerning my options?

Yes.  At no cost to you, Dentsu Aegis Network has contracted with Patterson-Mills to offer face-to-face or telephone meetings with you to discuss the implications of your Report, should you decide to take this up.
Click here to go to straight to the pension allowances questionnaire

Why is all this happening now?

The Chancellor announced last July that he is to change the HMRC rules for pension allowances from 6 April 2016.  In our view, these changes are the most sweeping changes to contribution limits in history and, on this occasion, extremely penal for those that could quite easily make a mistake and breach a new rule.

Your Employer has been left with no option other than to amend its contributions structures because of these new rules. This means that, for some, contributions from the Company are reducing, whilst so are your allowances.  However, you may be able to make up for any reductions without impacting upon your personal costs, after tax, owing to the contribution methods available for your pension scheme at Dentsu Aegis Network Ltd.  These matters will be shown in our Report.

Dentsu Aegis Network is keen to help its Staff avoid unnecessary (and unwanted) tax consequences from the HMRC changes or, similarly, reductions in pension income at retirement.  For these reasons Dentsu Aegis Network is taking a pro-active approach by appointing and paying for us, as specialist pension consultants, to assist you.

Click here to go to straight to the pension allowances questionnaire
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