Retirement Planning
Did you know that you will spend almost a third of your life in retirement? Even if your retirement isn’t on the near horizon it’s never too early to start planning. A pension is one of the most effective ways to save for your future because of the tax benefits you can enjoy.
Seeing the road ahead with a SIPP
Unlike a traditional pension plan which is managed for you by someone else, a SIPP (Self Invested Pension Plan) puts you in control.
You should consider a SIPP as a tax-efficient wrapper into which you can put a range of investments chosen by you to achieve your future personal financial goals.
Tax benefits
The government will give you a tax rebate on contributions that you make to your SIPP (subject to the limits set out below). If you are a basic rate tax payer you will receive 22% tax relief straight in to your SIPP and if you are a higher rate tax payer a further 18% tax can be reclaimed through your tax return.
The table below gives a breakdown of your and the governments contribution if you were to contribute £15,000 to your SIPP.
| Cost to You | Government Contribution | Total Contribution | |
| Basic rate tax payer (22%) | £11,700 | £3,300 | £15,000 |
Higher rate tax payer (40%) |
£9,000 | £6,000 | £15,000 |
Tax treatment will depend on your individual circumstances and may be subject to change in the future.
Barclays Stockbrokers SIPP
Key Features
If you choose a Barclays Stockbrokers SIPP, you’ll benefit from:
- A wide range of investment choices - include as many products as you like from Stocks & Shares, Funds, Investment Notes, Covered Warrants, ETFs, REITS and many more
- Competitive trading rates from £6.95 per online trade if you trade 11 or more times per calendar month; otherwise it’s just £12
- Access to our Funds Market, with over 675 funds from 33 leading fund managers at specially discounted initial charges
- No administration fee if your SIPP only contains funds and you have a cash balance of less than £500
- Access to our award-winning website, with a host of market information, expert research and tools and flexible order types
- SIPP administration by AJ Bell Management Ltd, one of the UK’s leading specialists in trustee and administration services for SIPP.
Further SIPP benefits
- Tax free returns on investments
- Any assets within your SIPP are free from capital gains and income tax
- No further tax payable on dividend income
- Option to take up to 25% of your pension fund as a lump sum at the age of 50 (55 from April 2010).
Based on current HM Revenue & Customs rules. These rules may change in the future.

