RPSM14101037 - Technical pages: Transfers: Recognised transfers from registered pension schemes: Overseas pension schemes – international organisations

Conditions that a scheme established by an international organisation has to meet to be an overseas pension scheme.

A scheme that is established outside the UK by an international organisation for the purpose of providing benefits for, or in respect of, past service as an employee of the organisation does not need to meet the regulation and tax-recognition conditions in RPSM14101035 and RPSM14101036 to be an overseas pension scheme. It needs instead to satisfy the following requirements to be an overseas pension scheme:

1. its rules must provide that at least 70% of a member’s UK tax-relieved scheme funds will be designated by the scheme manager for the purpose of providing the member with an income for life, and
   
   
2. the pension benefits payable to the member under the scheme (and any lump sum associated with those benefits) must be payable no earlier than they would be if pension rule 1 in section 165 applied.

UK tax-relieved scheme funds means the sum of the member’s UK tax-relieved fund and their relevant transfer fund. Those terms are explained in RPSM13102150 and in RPSM13102170.

Pension rule 1 in section 165 provides that no payment of pension may be made before the day on which the member reaches normal minimum pension age, unless the ill-health condition was met immediately before the member became entitled to a pension under the scheme. Guidance on the normal minimum pension age is provided at RPSM08100010 to RPSM08100030, and there is guidance on the ill-health condition in RPSM08100070.

An international organisation means an organisation to which section1 of the International Organisations Act 1968 applies by virtue of an Order in Council under subsection (1) of that section. This category includes the United Nations and the European Union.