Income tax.

[mhic]

Are there any allowances against income tax for resident pensioners here, I've been talking to a friend with a similar income and he claims to be paying a lot less than me. I have no problem with paying my dues but I'm wondering if I should change accountants.

Mhic.

[olive]

State pension, occupational pension, annuity? The last two are taxed differently. That might be the reason.

[El Cid]

No, only the annuity is taxed differently. If the occupational pension is a UK government pension that affects the tax. Normal occupational pensions are just lumped in with the state pension.

He may well have a government pension, in which case he would pay less than you.

However the rules have just changed and now his government pension, although it will continue to be taxed only in the UK, will affect the tax he pays on any other pensions.

There are also additional allowances when you reach 65 and 75 which could also make a difference.

Sid

[mhic]

Thanks for the info I'll have a word with the accountant about that, I seem to be paying a lot of tax on a small pension from my old firm and the pension (or should that be benefit) I get from the UK.
Mhic.

[El Cid]

I don't really see how he could get that wrong as the only figure he has to key into the program is your total pension income.

All the allowances are added automatically and all the complicated tax figures and allowances are worked out by the program.

It takes about 5 minutes to do a simple tax return and most of that is putting in your name and personal details. It's pretty difficult to get wrong if you just have pension income.

Sid