Pension freedoms are being compromised

If you are resident in Spain (if you live here more than 183 days in a calendar year, the Spanish tax authorities and in turn the UK HMRC will class you as Spanish resident) and held assets outside Spain as at 29 December 2017 worth over Euro 50,000, and you haven’t already declared them on a Modelo 720, you need to so by the end of March.

You may ask why should you bother, well unless you want a huge fine and possibly tax audit (they can legally go back to 2012) it is in your best interests to do it.

Some of you may still be under the impression that the reporting of assets is not a legal requirement; if this is the case then sadly I have to tell you, you are mistaken. On 15 February 2017, the European Commission accepted that Spain has the right to require residents to declare overseas assets. While the Commission disagrees with the severity of punishments for late or inaccurate submissions, the requirement to submit the Modelo 720 form is not under challenge. The EU and the UK say it is a legal requirement.

Managing your finances is not an easy task, and many people worry whether they’ll have enough money to last them through retirement. Most people are likely to need a helping hand from a financial adviser, and a new move from the government will help make receiving this advice easier than ever before.

New plans, to be introduced in April 2017, will allow pension savers to withdraw a tax-free lump sum of £1,500 from their pensions so that they can pay for financial advice regarding their retirement funding.