A simple question—can a UK pension be rolled into a US IRA or 401(k)?—opens a door to some of the most punishing rules in cross‑border retirement planning. We walk through the hard stop that HMRC’s QROPS regime creates, why no US plans qualify, and how an “unauthorized payment” can unleash a 55% UK charge that vaporizes decades of savings. Then we pressure-test the popular third‑country workaround, showing how the 25% overseas transfer charge, US income tax, and foreign trust reporting can tu...
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A simple question—can a UK pension be rolled into a US IRA or 401(k)?—opens a door to some of the most punishing rules in cross‑border retirement planning. We walk through the hard stop that HMRC’s QROPS regime creates, why no US plans qualify, and how an “unauthorized payment” can unleash a 55% UK charge that vaporizes decades of savings. Then we pressure-test the popular third‑country workaround, showing how the 25% overseas transfer charge, US income tax, and foreign trust reporting can tu...
Why your 'simple' TOD account might cost your heirs thousands in taxes
The Expat Sage Podcast
16 minutes
1 month ago
Why your 'simple' TOD account might cost your heirs thousands in taxes
Ever wondered if those "simple" financial solutions actually create more problems than they solve? That's exactly what we discovered when examining Transfer on Death (TOD) and Payable on Death (POD) accounts for Americans living abroad. These accounts seem like perfect solutions - they transfer assets directly to beneficiaries and bypass probate. But cross borders, and suddenly their simplicity unravels dramatically. While technically valid under US state laws, they create a perfect storm of...
The Expat Sage Podcast
A simple question—can a UK pension be rolled into a US IRA or 401(k)?—opens a door to some of the most punishing rules in cross‑border retirement planning. We walk through the hard stop that HMRC’s QROPS regime creates, why no US plans qualify, and how an “unauthorized payment” can unleash a 55% UK charge that vaporizes decades of savings. Then we pressure-test the popular third‑country workaround, showing how the 25% overseas transfer charge, US income tax, and foreign trust reporting can tu...
