This FAQ section provides helpful information about managing your pension with IFGL Pensions. Whether you’re updating your details, making contributions, transferring benefits or preparing to access your pension, you’ll find clear guidance here.
If you need personalised support, you can speak to your financial adviser or contact us directly.
Who is IFGL Pensions?
IFGL Pensions is an international Self-Invested Personal Pension (SIPP) and Small Self-Administered Schemes (SSAS) administrator and operator based in Liverpool, UK. We have 20 years’ experience in the industry and are regulated by the UK Financial Conduct Authority. We provide long-term pension solutions designed to help you build and manage your retirement savings. We work with professional financial advisers to ensure your pension is structured, managed and supported appropriately over time.
How do I update details of my beneficiaries?
You can update your beneficiary details by completing the relevant beneficiary nomination form. This ensures that Trustees can factor your wishes when determining where death benefits should be distributed. It’s important to keep this form up to date, and to complete a new one if your circumstances change – for example if you get divorced or married or have other changes to financial dependents like children.
Your financial adviser can provide you with guidance and support in identifying the most appropriate beneficiaries for your pension savings when considering your wider inheritance planning requirements.
How do I update my personal details?
Changes to personal details such as address or contact information can be made by submitting the appropriate update request via your adviser or you can fill out the update request form. Keeping your details current helps ensure smooth communication and efficient servicing.
How can I access information about my pension?
You can request information about your pension through your financial adviser, who can obtain up-to-date valuations and policy details on your behalf. You can also contact us directly if you would prefer.
IFGL Pensions has connected to the UK Government’s Pensions Dashboard ecosystem, ahead of its 31 January 2026 deadline in line with the timetable set by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). This means that once the Pensions Dashboard goes live in late 2026, IFGL Pensions members will be able to use it to find a lost pension or see all their pensions in one place online. This will allow them to view their projected total retirement outcome.
How can I contribute more to my pension?
IFGL Pensions can accept ad hoc or regular contributions into your pension. These can be personal contributions that you want to save in for your retirement, or employer contributions.
You can access our Contribution form here: Contribution Declaration for Tax Year 2025/26.
Contributing to a pension can be one of the most tax-efficient forms of saving available, with the amount of tax relief you benefit from being based on the highest rate of income tax you pay. We can apply basic rate tax relief automatically, with higher rate relief top up needing to be reclaimed via your tax coding or self-assessment tax return.
It’s worth noting that the amount you can contribute to pensions and benefit from tax relief is subject to an annual limit called the pensions annual allowance. This is normally the lower of £60,000 or 100% of your earnings. This limit includes tax relief and employer contributions.
You can roll forward up to 3 years of unused allowances using carry forward relief.
Higher earners and those who have previously withdrawn money from pensions may have lower annual allowances under the Tapered Annual Allowance and Money Purchase Annual Allowance rules – to a minimum of £10,000 gross per annum.
Even non-earners or expats can benefit from an amount of basic rate tax relief on pension saving in certain circumstances.
It’s important to take financial advice to ensure that your contributions are structured efficiently, especially if considering saving larger amounts into a pension.
How can I transfer in another pension?
We can receive pension transfers from a wide variety of pension. This includes UK Defined Contribution and Defined Benefit pensions, but we can also accept transfers from overseas pension schemes like QROPS or ROPS.
Your adviser will work with you to assess suitability, manage the transfer process and coordinate with IFGL Pensions to ensure the transfer is completed efficiently and securely. If you wish to transfer a Defined Benefit pension plan, advice is a mandatory requirement.
IFGL Pensions can accept pension transfers in cash, or ‘in specie’ (a transfer where you don’t need to sell your investments, you move them from one pension provider to another by re-registering ownership of the investments to the new trustee).
Your SIPP or SSAS can receive pension transfers when you set it up with IFGL Pensions, but we can also receive additional pension transfers later. You can access our supplementary form for additional pension transfers here: Supplementary Form for Additional Pension Transfers
Depending upon the type of pension scheme the transfer is coming from, pension transfers can sometimes take a little while to complete – usually 6-8 weeks, but in some cases could be even longer depending upon any questions or issues which crop up.
How do I access my pension benefits?
Accessing your pension benefits is done with the support of your financial adviser. They will help you understand the options available to you, such as taking benefits at retirement, drawing income, or making lump-sum withdrawals based on your personal circumstances, objectives and the rules of your pension plan. Once you’ve agreed on the right approach, your adviser will submit the required instructions and documentation to IFGL Pensions, and we’ll process your request in line with regulatory and product requirements.
Reality check: pension access has tax and long-term implications. Adviser guidance isn’t optional here; it’s how you avoid expensive mistakes.