Pensions

[pipchatel]

Hello all. A question to Britt Expats. I have been in Thailand now for 5 yrs, still a young lad of 60. I am English.

Still 5 yrs away from Pension time. The question to you is, are U K pensions upgraded here in Thailand every year?? There is a case now up before the Lords Law court in the U K for people who have not had a pension increase as they live in either, Oz, Canada, south Africa and other countries?

European counties, and USA the pensions are increased each year. Cannot find out anywhere the situation in Thailand Thanks and have a good day

"You know when you are geting old, every morning you wake up and look in the mirror,

if it steams up, shave|"

[Pattaya_Fox]

Hello all. A question to Britt Expats. I have been in Thailand now for 5 yrs, still a young lad of 60. I am English.

Still 5 yrs away from Pension time. The question to you is, are U K pensions upgraded here in Thailand  every year?? There is a case now up before the Lords Law court in the U K for people who have not had a pension increase as they live in either, Oz, Canada, south Africa and other countries?

European counties, and USA the pensions are increased each year. Cannot find out anywhere the situation in Thailand  Thanks and have a good day

"You know when you are  geting old, every morning you wake up and look in the mirror,

if it steams up,  shave|"

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

For you to get the correct information I would suggest that you contact The International Pension Centre.

tel +44 191218 7777

fax +44 191218 7293

[Thetyim]

You cannot get the pension upgrades when living in Thailand

[Steve2UK]

Hello all. A question to Britt Expats. I have been in Thailand now for 5 yrs, still a young lad of 60. I am English.

Still 5 yrs away from Pension time. The question to you is, are U K pensions upgraded here in Thailand  every year?? There is a case now up before the Lords Law court in the U K for people who have not had a pension increase as they live in either, Oz, Canada, south Africa and other countries?

European counties, and USA the pensions are increased each year. Cannot find out anywhere the situation in Thailand  Thanks and have a good day

"You know when you are  geting old, every morning you wake up and look in the mirror,

if it steams up,  shave|"

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Take a look at this link:

http://www.inlandrevenue.gov.uk/cnr/index.htm

(pensions for overseas residents are handled by Inland Revenue, not the Pensions Agency). You may be able to e-mail your query; failing that, there's a postal address to write to.

Oh - and please let the rest of us know what you find out. I'm 6 years behind you but also looking into the future

[RDN]

Agreed, Thetyim - not a chance pipchatel, mate. I've been a member of BEP (British Expatriate Pensioners - [email protected] - http://groups.yahoo.com/group/bep/ ) for many years, but - and I hope I'm not being too harsh here - it's run by a group of old farts who haven't got a clue how to get things done. I did stir them up a bit some months ago citing Emily Pankhurst and her fight to get women the vote and a few members agreed that we (expat pensioners) need to do something more drastic to get the situation changed. But since we don't live in the UK and probably 90% of us don't vote, there's no incentive whatever for any government to spend 400 million a year giving us what we have paid for (by our pension contributions) and deserve.

I have since written other posts to that group, but strangely they have not been published. I am clearly too radical and must get in step with the "write to your local MP" mentality of the majority of this group's members.

All I can say is make sure you get the maximum old age pension you can - by topping up your contributions in the last few years. My last assessment was something like 93% of a full pension. That is what I'll get (in about 10 year's time) and I will top up as necessary to get 100%. Maybe in 5 years time I'll try to take a more active role in this (BEP) group, but while it's being run by the current old fogies, I can't be bothered.

[Rob5060]

I think more disgusting than not getting a pension increase is the prospect of a Citizens pension.

It is being considered by all the major political parties and if I understand it correctly will be paid to residents of the UK on retirement, not taking into account contributions.

Consequently possibly not be paid to people living in Thailand etc.

If this was the case it makes me wonder whether to top up my contributions or not .

[Rinrada]

Tell them you live in Manila.

Good xcuse for a jolly.....

[Rob5060]

Could you just use as convenient address as home in the UK eg relative

[RDN]

Could you just use as convenient address as home in the UK eg relative

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I don't think they're that stupid - wish they were. And I do not believe a Citizen's pension would leave all expats without a pension - it's just not realistic.

Edit:

And here's an example of more stupid pen-pushing waste of money: if you return to England for a few months, they give you the increased ("uprated") pension and then take it off again when you go back abroad. What a f****ing waste of time and money!

Edited March 2, 2005 by RDN

[Rinrada]

Bit of Info.... from the Social

Social security agreements between the United Kingdom (UK) and other countries

We are currently updating all the overseas leaflets on this site.

For this reason some of the information you see here may not be absolutely up-to-date.

Please note, a new system of bereavement benefits for men and women was introduced in April 2001, replacing a range of widows' benefits. If you are living abroad and think these benefits may apply to you, please contact:

The Pension Service

International Pension Centre

Tyneview Park

Whitley Road

Newcastle-upon-Tyne

NE98 1BA.

UK phone: 0191 218 7777

UK fax: 0191 218 3836

Email: [email protected]

Outside UK dial international code, then:

phone: 44 191 218 7777

fax: 44 191 218 3836

To get a pension forecast UK phone:

0191 218 7585

Outside UK dial international code, then phone:

44 191 218 7585

What is a social security agreement?A-Z listing for social security agreements

Definitions.Benefits are dealt with by Jobcentre Plus and The Pension Service.

Contact The Pension Service

What is a social security agreement?

If you are going to another country in the European Economic Area (EEA) or a country which has a social security agreement with the United Kingdom (UK), you might be able to get a benefit which you would not normally get abroad. Or you might be able to get a benefit which that country provides.

If you are coming from one of these countries you might be able to get a benefit from that country or a benefit the UK provides.

Check the list below to see if the country you are going to or coming from has a social security agreement with the UK. You can get information about the agreement by downloading the leaflet.

The leaflets also include information about medical services.

You can download documents marked with a using Adobe Acrobat Reader, available free of charge.

A-Z listing for social security agreements top of page

Australia (agreement ended 28 February 2001)

Austria

Barbados 102KB

Bermuda 89KB

Belgium

Canada 99KB

Cyprus

Czech Republic

Denmark

Estonia

Finland

France

Germany

Gibraltar

Greece

Hungary

Iceland

Ireland

Israel 96KB

Italy

Jamaica 97KB

Jersey and Guernsey 103KB

Latvia

Liechtenstein

Lithuania

Luxembourg

Malta

Mauritius 92KB

Netherlands

New Zealand 92KB

Norway

Philippines 93KB

Poland

Portugal

Slovakia

Slovenia

Spain

Sweden

Switzerland

Turkey 103KB

USA 97KB

Yugoslavia (applies to the Republics of the former Yugoslavia) 99KB

Definitions top of page

European Economic Area:European Community (EC) social security rules apply to European Economic Area (EEA) countries.

EEA countries are:Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom (UK).

Gibraltar – The UK applies the EC social security rules to Gibraltar as though it is another EEA country.

Switzerland – The EC social security rules largely cover Switzerland.

UK means England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland but not the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man.

Great Britain means England, Scotland and Wales.

http://www.dwp.gov.uk/lifeevent/benefits/s...ts.asp#azlisted

[Pattaya_Fox]

Hello all. A question to Britt Expats. I have been in Thailand now for 5 yrs, still a young lad of 60. I am English.

Still 5 yrs away from Pension time. The question to you is, are U K pensions upgraded here in Thailand  every year?? There is a case now up before the Lords Law court in the U K for people who have not had a pension increase as they live in either, Oz, Canada, south Africa and other countries?

European counties, and USA the pensions are increased each year. Cannot find out anywhere the situation in Thailand  Thanks and have a good day

"You know when you are  geting old, every morning you wake up and look in the mirror,

if it steams up,  shave|"

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Take a look at this link:

http://www.inlandrevenue.gov.uk/cnr/index.htm

(pensions for overseas residents are handled by Inland Revenue, not the Pensions Agency). You may be able to e-mail your query; failing that, there's a postal address to write to.

Oh - and please let the rest of us know what you find out. I'm 6 years behind you but also looking into the future

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

As this thread is also of particular interest to me I have made further enquiries with the Pension Service.

The Inland Revenue website as listed above is NOT of use to you if you are enquiring about receiving your State pension when living in Thailand,

It is of use to you if you have queeries about Nationa Insurance Contributions or any matters where payment of tax is involved.

I have spoken to the International pensions centre in Newcastle who have given me the following information.

Because Thailand is a country outside the EEA (European Economic Area) and it does not have a Social Security Agreement with the UK then the following is the current ruling.

If you live in Thailand permanently then your State pension will be paid at the rate that it is when you go to live there. The pension will remain at the same rate throughout your residency in Thailand and will not increase as it does to Uk and EEA residents.

I am told that the pension cannot be paid into a bank account, but a cheque in £`s Sterling can be posted to your Thailand address.

You should apply for your pension at least 6 months before you reach the age of 65 years. at www.thepensionservice.gov.uk

A pack containing application forms will be sent to you 4 months before your 65th birthday.

I trust that this will answer the question.

[RDN]

....I am told that the pension cannot be paid into a bank account, but a cheque in £`s Sterling can be posted to your Thailand address....

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I think you mean that they cannot pay it into a Thai bank. They must be able to pay it into a UK bank.

[RDN]

....Because Thailand is a country outside the EEA (European Economic Area) and it does not have a Social Security Agreement with the UK then the following is the current ruling.....

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

This is the excuse that they currently are using but has no actual relevance to whether they should give people living in Thailand the same pension as people living in England.

[Pattaya_Fox]

....I am told that the pension cannot be paid into a bank account, but a cheque in £`s Sterling can be posted to your Thailand address....

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I think you mean that they cannot pay it into a Thai bank. They must be able to pay it into a UK bank.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Yes they will not pay it into a Thai bank account.....