Money and property · Life between places
A UK pension and a US life: cross-border tax questions
A pension from an earlier job can sit quietly in the background until a move or retirement brings it back into focus. Find out exactly what arrangement you hold and obtain its documents before researching options. A provider's product label is a starting point for discussion, not the whole cross-border answer.
Begin researchingA preparation page, not a residence or filing determination. Filing is not currently available.
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Your cross-border tax questions.
Separate understanding the plan from deciding what to do with it. Note whether you are contributing, leaving it untouched or considering payments, without assuming these have identical questions.
- What type of arrangement do I hold and who can document it?
- Which questions should I ask before making contributions, transfers or withdrawals?
- What information will an adviser need about previous activity?
Make the next conversation easier
Records for your tax review.
Keep these in your own records. You do not need to send Treaty documents, amounts or personal details.
- Plan description and scheme documents
- Contribution and payment history
- Correspondence about proposed changes
Your next step in tax research.
Request the scheme's original documentation. Seek a review of the specific plan and proposed action before authorising a transfer or withdrawal.
Official tax guidance
Use the tax authorities’ guidance for the period and circumstances you are reviewing. These links are starting points, not an answer about your own position.
Want to organise your wider UK–US questions?
The preliminary diagnostic asks you to confirm your own context. Visiting this page does not fill in any answers.
Explore the UK–US diagnosticPreliminary only—not tax advice. No email, documents or exact amounts required.