Corinthian gets green light for Gibraltar QROPS

Corinthian Pension Trustees has received a license from the Financial Services Commission to provide trusteeship to pension schemes in Gibraltar.

Corinthian gets green light for Gibraltar QROPS

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The Gibraltar-based trust company can now offer its HM Revenue & Customs recognised Apollo QROPS, which has been included on the published QROPS list in the UK.

It said the QROPS has provided it with an opportunity to expand into the pension trustee sector.

The administration will be provided in Gibraltar by Consort Pension Administration, and Corinthian has recruited its founder and managing director David Erhardt to provide technical support.

Erhardt said: “All the services are provided by Gibraltar companies with no outsourcing overseas, which promotes employment opportunities and the ability for local regulation.”

Corinthian chairman John Britton said: “We are very pleased with the way Gibraltar has developed as a QROPS jurisdiction and we are delighted to now be a part of this expanding market."

Gibraltar has had a chequered history as a QROPS jurisdiction.

In 2009 transfers into its QROPS were halted after HM Revenue & Customs raised concerns about its 0% income tax charge on pension income for over 60s. But when a new government was elected in March 2012, newly appointed minister for financial service, Gilbert Licudi, put pans to resurrect the industry into motion.

The Gibraltar Parliament then approved two amendments to its tax regime including a mandate taxing all benefits paid by “certain imported pensions” at 2.5%. In September 2012, the government announced that it had received confirmation from HMRC that it was happy for the jurisdiction to begin accepting transfers in for pension schemes again.

In July last year, Erhardt joined Harbour Pensions Malta for brief stint as an adviser to its board following which he left to establish Corinthian.

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