Have you topped up a UK pension to cover gaps?

[Duffa]

You will be a bit less happy when your pension does not get uprated each year ......

True.
Though i'm still happy with the 100% ROI after the first ~ 4 months of pensionable age. The lost indexation pales by comparison!

 

[FlyingFiona]

You will be a bit less happy when your pension does not get uprated each year ......

Have you been petitioning your UK member for parliament about this? The British Pensions in Australia group have been asking members to do this for a while now.

 

[MattA]

Finally!!!
Pension projection has changed to reflect the 16 extra years which I bought
Paid in at end of April - credited this past week - so about 4+ months
Happy retiree in 2 years

Interesting -- thanks for the datapoint. I made my top-up payment in May and still waiting for it to credit. I keep meaning to brave the phone line again but might just wait a bit longer based on this timeframe. (Not quite the 6-8 weeks I was promised last time I called!)

 

[SydneySwan]

Have you been petitioning your UK member for parliament about this? The British Pensions in Australia group have been asking members to do this for a while now.

I am an active member of BPIA and suggest everyone on this forum should sign up and contribute. Here is the link.

Home - British Pensions in Australia

bpia.org.au

I have tried and am still trying to meet my UK member of Parliament. I will be in London for a few days in early October and am currently trying to setup a meeting .

 

[kelvedon]

I am an active member of BPIA and suggest everyone on this forum should sign up and contribute. Here is the link.

Home - British Pensions in Australia

bpia.org.au

I have tried and am still trying to meet my UK member of Parliament. I will be in London for a few days in early October and am currently trying to setup a meeting .

I think the Aus government missed a golden opportunity to push for pension indexation when they signed the trade agreement with the UK.
Johnson was desperate to show the new trade opportunities that Brexit gave the country.

 

[SydneySwan]

I think the Aus government missed a golden opportunity to push for pension indexation when they signed the trade agreement with the UK.
Johnson was desperate to show the new trade opportunities that Brexit gave the country.

I agree and lobbied the Liberal government and Dan Tehan in particular on this but they were petrified the UK would walk away. I was disgusted. It was a huge missed opportunity..

 

[clifford]

I am an active member of BPIA and suggest everyone on this forum should sign up and contribute. Here is the link.

I don't think I'll be joining,, with my AUD 5K pa British pension. 2.5% of nothing is nothing.

I guess I'll just have to rely on my indexed Comsuper and Australian Age Pensions.

 

[QF029]

I don't think I'll be joining,, with my AUD 5K pa British pension. 2.5% of nothing is nothing.

I guess I'll just have to rely on my indexed Comsuper and Australian Age Pensions.

I joined. You're not missing anything.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

I don't think I'll be joining,, with my AUD 5K pa British pension. 2.5% of nothing is nothing.

I guess I'll just have to rely on my indexed Comsuper and Australian Age Pensions.

When i’m in the nursing home, AUD100 a week will cover a trip to the movies, or the pub for lunch

 

[MattA]

Interesting -- thanks for the datapoint. I made my top-up payment in May and still waiting for it to credit. I keep meaning to brave the phone line again but might just wait a bit longer based on this timeframe. (Not quite the 6-8 weeks I was promised last time I called!)

Adding my own datapoint now -- just checked and my payment (transferred from a UK bank account on 27/05) has hit my record at some point over the last week. This was for those older years (going back to 2009 in my case when we left the UK) where they sent me a snail mail letter that arrived in Oz after their own "within 31 days" deadline in the letter had already passed.

So I make that approx. 15 weeks to credit.... Not exactly the initially promised timeframe I was told over the phone, but at least I didn't have to call them again to get it sorted.

Also nice to confirm that, based on the updated weekly estimate now showing in my account, the total cost of the additional years I paid for will be fully recouped just over half way through the first year of claiming, assuming I'm still ticking by then. Lack of indexation once claimed notwithstanding, it really is a phenomenal deal being able to pay for this at the class 2 rates...