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How do I transfer into a new Collective Retirement Account (CRA) and take partial pension commencement lump sum (PCLS)?

This step-by-step summary covers how to set up a new CRA with transfer of an uncrystallised pension, including taking a partial tax free cash payment (partial or full crystallisation).

Date: 02 October 2023

4 minute read

This article has not been updated with the Lifetime Allowance Abolition changes that came into effect from 6 April 2024.

What you’ll need to get started

  • Your client’s bank details (if not previously added to the system).
  • Details of the annuity purchase age.
  • Details of the desired tax-free lump sum per payment, payment frequency, and first withdrawal date.
  • Lifetime allowance (LTA) percentage used. This is the total LTA used with any other pension scheme, plus the LTA used in any other pension accounts your client holds with us.
  • Details of the desired assets to fund the payment(s).
  • Details of any taxable income.

Please note

  • If your client has a pre-A-Day pension, drawdown contract or annuity that started before 6 April 2006 that you have not informed us about previously, you will not be able to complete this process online and you will need to provide us with a paper form.

Watch time: 5 minutes

Instruct a transfer and taking partial PCLS: Step-by-step

1. Search for the relevant client. You'll find this on the homepage.

2. Click on the ‘New Business’ quick link button and select ‘New Business application’.

3. Select ‘Collective Retirement Account (CRA)’ as the product and tick the box ‘Take pension benefits’.

  • This allows you to instruct a partial PCLS payment
  • Assign an adviser to the account and answer the financial advice questions to confirm you can proceed with the application.

4. On step 2, enter the required client details. Information entered when initially setting up the client will have pulled through to the application.

5. Confirm the client’s tax residency details and nationality status.

6. Enter the client’s retirement age and answer the ‘Retirement assumption’ questions.

7. This guide covers a pension transfer-in.

  • For each transfer your client must sign a transfer authority form. You only need to send the form to us if the ceding provider does not support online applications.
  • Transfer authority forms must be sent to us for all occupational schemes.

8. Click on the ‘Transfer in’ box and enter the transfer details for the uncrystallised pension.

9. On the next step use the search facility to select your asset allocation for the transfer. The ‘Advanced Search’ option allows you to search using additional criteria. You can select any combination of model portfolios, funds, exchange traded instruments and cash.

Please note that we will invest all transfers and contributions before crystallising. This may create additional trades to fund the tax-free lump sum.

10. You may wish to consider investing in a cash holding that is more than sufficient to cover the desired tax free cash payment and fees, as this can reduce the amount of time it will take for the client to receive the payment when the transfer is received.

11. Once you’ve input the asset allocation, a risk score between 1 and 10 will be generated.

12. Select what will happen to any distributions received from the assets.

13. Select ‘Take pension lump sum and income’ from the dropdown options.

14. The amount available for crystallisation will be displayed and you can select either full or partial crystallisation.

15. Select partial crystallization and enter the desired crystallisation amount. Normally 25% of this will be paid out as PCLS and this will be displayed.

Please note if your client wants to receive a payment of more than £75,000, you must also complete the 'Tax-free lump sum and income withdrawal' form, which will be available at the end of this process. Without the form, we will not be able to crystallise the transfer(s) we receive and the proceeds will remain in Cash.

16. If sufficient, the cash holdings will be used to pay the PCLS and charges, or you can choose the asset selection method for the transaction and assets to move to the crystallised account.

17. On the next step, enter the gross income per withdrawal, and select the income frequency and first withdrawal date. Choose which assets to pay the income from. This can be either proportionally across all assets or from specified assets.

  • Please note that if there is insufficient value in an asset at the time of the sale then we will default to selling the remaining assets proportionally.
  • Confirm the client’s bank account. You have the option to split the income across two bank accounts if required.

18. The next step gives you the opportunity to review the information you have entered. Use the ‘Edit’ options next to the relevant section to return and make any changes if required.

19. In the next step the documentation which you must send to us will be generated.

  • You can download these documents straight away or re-access them later from the client’s account dashboard.

20. On the final step read through and tick the adviser declarations and click ‘Submit application’. The green banner at the top of the screen confirms that your application has been submitted.

  • Documents required to be sent to us will be shown. These will need to be signed by your client and posted to us.
  • In addition, supporting documents which you can keep for your own reference will also be available.

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