Withdrawal and Transfer of South African Pensions and Retirement Annuities (RA's)
We have managed a process for a number of years which provides for the withdrawal of South African private and occupational pensions (including Retirement Annuities) and their transfer overseas - principally to Australia, but also to the US, UK, New Zealand and other parts of the world.
The process is a relatively complicated one because of the number of parties involved in South Africa - including the insurance companies/pension providers, South African Revenue Service (SARS), Reserve Bank and commercial banks - and the amount of supporting paper work is considerable. Note that a sign off by SARS is an absolute requirement and therefore your tax affairs need to be in order and there is a relatively recent requirement that an SA resident needs to have lived offshore for more than 3 consecutive years before they can access their retirement annuity (RA).
Unfortunately, if your pension is already being paid, in the form of an annuity or otherwise, there is no option to capitalise the pension and effect a transfer.
The first stage of the transfer process for clients involves establishing, on a no commitment basis, exactly how much is available for transfer after South African tax and the fees that would apply for administering the transfer process.
Note that the amounts withdrawn may be transferred to any offshore destination, on a worldwide basis, and do not have to be contributed to a pension scheme. However, in a number of countries, such as Australia, that may not be tax efficient and you are encouraged to seek professional tax advice where appropriate.
If you are considering the withdrawal and transfer of your South African pension or RA, wherever in the world you might be based, please provide your details in the contact form below and we will arrange for you to be contacted promptly and the process discussed in detail. The service is very cost competitive, includes SARS and SARB clearance, and the required documentation has been pre-populated wherever possible to reduce time and complexity.
If you would like to arrange professional advice please complete the Inquiry form below providing details and you will be contacted promptly.
