Recent figures by the HMRC show that more than 37,300 pension scheme members exceeded their annual allowance in 2017/2018 and were hit by an additional tax charge. The total value of these contributions above the annual allowance surged from £578m in 2016/17 to £812m in 2017/18. Therefore, this is no longer just a phenomenon among the very wealthy, but breaching the annual allowance is something that could be of wider concern.
On the one hand government initiatives like auto-enrolment are encouraging people to save into a pension for retirement but, on the other hand, their complex system of allowances risks discouraging and penalising savers who are trying to plan their finances for the future.
If you are in a position where this might affect you, SewellBrydenGunn would be pleased to discuss this with you and help you use your tax allowances effectively.