Important notice about the proposed protected age for pension benefits
The minimum age that most customers can access their pension benefits is currently age 55, however, the Government is proposing to increase this to 57 from 6th April 2028. The Government has outlined its proposals in a consultation document which can be found here.
In the consultation the Government proposes that existing pension members, as at 11th February 2021, can have their retirement age of 55 protected for pension benefits in that particular scheme.
When a customer transfers their pension to or from another scheme the current proposals state that the protected retirement age would be lost.
In addition to this, customers who will be 55 after 6th April 2028, and open a pension after the 11th February 2021, could have to wait until they are at least 57 before accessing their pension savings without incurring additional tax charges (unless they are taking their pension due to ill-health).
As this is a consultation, it is not is not yet certain that the Government will go ahead with its proposals as outlined.