Australia’s Minister for Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs, Jenny Macklin has announced that the British Government has agreed to discuss the contentious issue of frozen pensions.
Article written by The Overseas Guides Company
The long overdue development came after discussions last week with British Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Iain Duncan Smith.
Under current laws Britain’s frozen pensions policy means that around 500,000 British retirees, in over 100 different countries, have not had their British pensions increased in line with inflation since they emigrated. For those who have been gone for 20 years, they will still be receiving £54.15 in line with what it was all those years ago rather than the £107 that they would be entitled to now.
More than half of the aforementioned expats live in Australia. The Australian government has worked out that out of the 252,000 British expats living down under, 190,000 are provided with means-tested Australian assistance to help them get by. This assistance costs Australia approximately £71 million every year.
“Understandably, expat pensioners expect to be treated the same wherever they are in the world,” said Richard Way, editor of the Overseas Buying Guides. “However, one way they can stretch their monthly spending power is by using a currency exchange specialist, such as Smart Currency Exchange, to have their pension transferred from the UK to Australia, or wherever it is they live. Smart, for example, typically offers exchange rates that are 2-4 per cent better than what you’d get by sending the money direct through your bank.”
This development will no doubt delight campaigners who have been fighting to receive the pensions that they contributed to when they were resident in the UK.
Search for property for sale in Australia by visiting the Australian listings on Rightmove Overseas. When emigrating to Australia or buying property there, using a currency exchange specialist rather than a bank to transfer your money could save you thousands. Smart Currency Exchange can help you do this – for more information download their free guide by clicking here.
To understand the full step-by-step process to buying a property in Australia, collect The Overseas Guides Company’s ‘Australia Property Buying Guide’
The views and comments herein are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of Rightmove Overseas, Rightmove Group Ltd or Rightmove Plc