Winter Fuel Payments are essentially lump sum amounts paid to pensioners once a year, tax free, in order to ensure they can afford to heat their homes. These payments are in addition to the State Pension which in many ways is an admission that the State Pension isn’t sufficient to keep pensioners warm in the winter. The Winter Fuel Payment was introduced in 1997 and was available to everyone just like the State Pension. That all changed in July of this year, however, and has caused quite a stir, to say the least. According to the new rules, The Winter Fuel Payment will only be available to people with means-tested benefits. To explain that, people in the UK who can prove that their income and savings are below a certain level, get additional benefits called means-tested benefits.
Examples of means-tested benefits include Universal Credit, Pension Credit, Income Support, Working Tax Credit, and Child Tax Credit. Now over 500,000 pensioners in the UK have signed a petition asking Chancellor Rachel Reeves to reverse her decision which apparently translates to over 10 million pensioners being unable to heat their homes. If you’ve worked your entire life and have finally retired to enjoy your “golden years,” the last thing you want to be worried about is the freezing cold. Additionally, as per the new rules, a number of groups of people have been excluded like those receiving free long-term hospital care, people with immigration issues, people already receiving other pension credits, and convicts. While the government claims the new rules will help them save £1.5 billion, taking away the heat payments for millions of pensioners across the UK just sounds wrong.
The Winter Fuel Payments which are either £300 or £200 depending on whether you have someone living in your home over the age of 80 or not, have become a major topic of conversation ever since its introduction. While some people feel like making Winter Fuel Payments to everyone on the State Pension indiscriminately is a case of “poor targeting,” and would rather the approach be more specific to people who are unable to afford heat in their homes. Others feel the universal approach ensures everyone can afford heat in the winter, especially people who are above the age of 80 and often don’t remember to claim the Winter Fuel Payment or are unable to claim it without someone’s help.
Of course if you’re Indian and among the 10 million UK pensioners who are not going to receive the Winter Payments this year, you can always move back to India where it’s warm and we can guarantee you fixed returns on your pension fund up to 10.5%.
Will I be able to invest my pension plan in the stock market in India?
In terms of investment opportunities, there are two basic categories for QROPS investors in India. The first one is fixed-income instruments where interest rates go up to 10.5% where the capital and returns are guaranteed. The other option is investing in equities where returns aren’t guaranteed but one can expect the inflation adjusted returns. Investors looking to invest through a QROPS can invest in equity funds through ULIPS, which are basically large, flexi or pure equity funds.
How long does the process take?
While most websites and “agencies” claim it can take up to six months to complete the transfer, at qropsdirect.in we can get the job done in a matter of 30 days.