Use It or Lose It, When It Comes to UK Pensions: Ashworth & Trow

Chancellor Rachel Reeves has profoundly altered the UK’s pensions landscape. Starting in April 2027, any retirement savings not spent in a person’s lifetime will form part of their taxable estate, largely subject to the 40% inheritance tax. That’s in addition to the income tax most people already pay when drawing down their pension.

At a stroke, this has made pensions far less attractive as estate-management tools — which to be fair, they never should have been in the first place.

So in this new “use it or lose it” world, our approach to pensions must also change from building ...