Expat Pensions Risk Losing on Bank Charges

Expat pensioners using bank-to-bank transfer facilities could be losing out on their retirement income due to the higher fees charged for such services, suggests new data from the UK's Post Office. 

Of the 1,038,600 pensioners living abroad the majority are transferring their sterling pensions into local currency deposited into an overseas bank account. But the Post Office warns that making regular bank-to-bank transfers to move a pension exposes expat pensioners to repeated bank charges which are significantly eating into retirement income. Some banks are charging as much as £42.50 per transaction, warns the Post Office, which calculates that such quarterly transfers will incur charges of £170 over a year - that's the equivalent of almost a fortnight’s worth of the current State Pension allowance. 

The Post Office advises pensioners to shop around to make sure they’re not wasting money on bank transfer fees by always checking the small print for any transfer service they use. It points out that it's own International Payments service doesn’t charge a fee at all, and also offers a regular payment facility so customers don’t have to make repeat transactions. The service also allows customers to fix their exchange rate for up to a year to avoid being caught out by fluctuating rates.

Sarah Munro, Head of Money Transfers at the Post Office, says, “It’s a real shame that at a time when they should be enjoying life, so many pensioners may be having their income eaten up by high bank charges, when sending cash overseas."

You can find out more from the Post Office