Personal Pension

With Your Pension Select @ Norwich Union, you get a great choice of funds to invest in - and when you reach retirement you have the option to retire gradually or full time.

• Choose from over 190 funds from some of the top names in investment management
• You receive tax relief on your payments, which is added to your pension fund
• You can make regular and/or one-off payments - and you can stop, restart and change your payments to suit your circumstances
• Choose either full or semi-retirement with our range of income options
• Talk to your adviser and find out how to apply for a personal pension.

A personal pension that gives you more choice

Your Pension Select @ Norwich Union is a personal pension plan that aims to help you build up a sum of money that you can then use to provide yourself with an income in retirement.

What is a personal pension?

A personal pension is a long-term investment that helps you build up a sum of money, which you can then use to provide yourself with an income in retirement. It's a tax-efficient way to invest because HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) adds tax relief to your payments into your pension plans. For example, if basic rate tax is 20% and you pay £160 into your plan, HMRC will add £40 to this, so the total invested into your plan is £200. This is known as basic rate tax relief. You can pay in as much as you can comfortably afford, but because of the valuable tax relief, there is a maximum. You can pay up to £3,600 each year (inclusive of tax relief) into your plan even if you don't have any earnings or pay up to 100% of your UK taxable earnings if greater.

If you're a higher rate taxpayer the payments made into your plan will only be increased by basic rate tax relief, but you'll be able to claim higher rate tax relief on your annual self-assessment tax return. Bear in mind that the future basis and rates of tax may vary and the tax relief available will depend on your personal circumstances.

Your Pension Select - how does it work?

With a Your Pension Select @ Norwich Union plan, you can pay money regularly or make one-off payments as and when you want. The minimum regular payment is £200 per month including tax relief and the minimum one-off payment is £10,000 including tax relief. The money paid into your plan is invested in the funds that you choose with the aim of growing your pension. Your Pension Select offers a wide choice of investment funds. The ones that are most suitable for you will depend on your retirement goals and your attitude to risk/return. Remember that the value of your pension investment can go down as well as up and is not guaranteed.

Any statement about tax liability is based on our understanding of current law and tax practice. Future changes in law and tax practice could affect how much your plan is worth and your tax liability. Your plan could also be affected by changes in your personal financial circumstances.

What are the benefits?

• You receive basic tax relief on your payments, which is added to your pension fund.
• You can stop, start or increase your payments to suit your personal circumstances.
• You can choose from over 190 funds managed by some of the top names in investment management such as Fidelity and Invesco.
• You can automatically switch your investments into lower risk/return funds as you get closer to retirement.
• You can choose either full or semi-retirement with our flexible retirement income options. (You can currently take your pensions benefits at any time between the ages of 50 (55 from 6th April 2010) and 75.) To find out more about your choices when you retire, you can download our Guide to Your Pension Select (PDF).
• You can usually take up to 25% of your fund as a tax-free lump sum, but remember that this will reduce the amount available to provide you with an income in retirement.
• There are no upfront charges for setting up your pension and no charges for switching funds. Instead, there is an annual charge and, as your pension fund grows, your annual fund charge may reduce. Find out more about the fund charges.

Is a personal pension right for you?

If you're under 75 years of age and you want to invest in a pension in a tax-efficient way, a personal pension may be right for you. Your Pension Select is suitable for people who are employed, self-employed or not employed. It may be right for you if you are willing to pay more into your pension arrangements than you would in a stakeholder pension plan, want to access to a wider range of investment funds and, when the time comes, choose how and when you take your benefits - whether through full or gradual retirement.

Other useful information

Find the answers to some frequently asked questions

Understand your attitude to risk/return and which funds might suit you best

How to apply

Find out more about how to apply for Your Pension Select. The first step is to talk it through with a financial adviser to make sure it's the right pension plan for you. If you don't have an adviser, you can find one in your area at www.unbiased.co.uk.

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