Establish what retirement will cost, value everything you will have, and test the two against each other year by year with realistic assumptions for inflation, returns and lifespan. A good plan is also stress-tested against early market falls and a long life. This is the cash-flow modelling we build for every retirement planning client.
It depends on your intended lifestyle. As a benchmark, the PLSA Retirement Living Standards suggest a single person needs roughly £13,000 to £14,000 a year for a minimum lifestyle and around £44,000 for a comfortable one, excluding housing costs. The State Pension provides £12,547.60 a year (2026/27); your pensions and investments need to fund the [...]
From 6 April 2027, unused pension funds (including SSAS funds) will normally count towards a deceased member's estate for inheritance tax, with exemptions for spouses and civil partners. Trustees and members should review death benefit nominations, scheme funding and withdrawal strategy ahead of the change.
There is no legal requirement to appoint one, but every SSAS must be registered with HMRC and comply with pension legislation, and trustees are personally responsible for the scheme. Most schemes appoint a professional administrator to handle registration, reporting and compliance. We can arrange and coordinate this as part of our advice.
A SSAS involves meaningful set-up and annual administration costs, typically justified only where combined member funds are around £200,000 or more, or where you will genuinely use the loanback or property features. We set out the full costs before you commit, and will tell you honestly if a SIPP would serve you better.
Up to 11. Most schemes consist of company directors and their family members, with all members usually acting as trustees. This pooling of funds and control is why SSASs are often used as multi-generational "family pensions".
Yes. A SSAS can purchase commercial property from a connected party, including the sponsoring company or its directors, provided the transaction is at an independently verified market value. This can release capital into the business while securing the premises within the pension.
Yes, up to 50% of the scheme's net assets, provided HMRC's conditions are met: a first legal charge over an asset of sufficient value, a commercial interest rate of at least 1% above average bank base rates, equal capital-and-interest repayments, and a maximum five-year term. Loans that breach these rules trigger substantial tax charges, so [...]
A SIPP is an individual personal pension. A SSAS is a company-sponsored scheme whose members act as trustees together. The key practical differences: a SSAS can lend up to 50% of its assets to the sponsoring company and pools members' funds for larger investments, but it costs more to administer and decisions are made jointly.
A SSAS is an occupational pension scheme established by a limited company, typically for its directors and senior employees, with a maximum of 11 members. The members are normally also the trustees, giving them collective control over how the scheme's assets are invested, including options unavailable to other pensions such as lending to the sponsoring [...]