Search Results

1-2 of 2 results for subject:Uprating

Show detailed: On Off

Results: 10 20 50 100

Sort by: Newest first Oldest first

Pensions: Reciprocal Uprating Agreements

In relation to the pensions of British citizens retiring to countries without reciprocal agreements on social security, for each country, what is the estimated cost of indexing those pensions from now on (a) for each of the next five years; (b) in 2015; (c) in 2020; and (d) in 2030.

Asked by

Lord Oakeshott of Seagrove Bay (Liberal Democrat)

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Answered on

26 October 2005

The table below shows the numbers of UK state pensions paid to people residing in countries outside the European Economic Area and with which the UK does not have a reciprocal social security agreement covering uprating of UK state pensions

Country	Number of UK state pensions paid
Afghanistan	1
Albania	9
Algeria	7
Andorra	201
Anguilla	142
Antigua	426
Antilles (Netherlands)	31
Arab Emirates (United)	256
Argentina	238
Ascension Island	5
Australia	236,851
Bahamas	235
Bahrain	64
Bangladesh	2,682
Barbuda	4
Belize	53
Benin	4
Bhutan	1
Bolivia	25
Botswana	131
Brazil	498
Brunei	14
Bulgaria	59
Burkina Faso	2
Burma	3
Cameroon	12
Canada	151,230
Cape Verde Islands	6
Cayman Islands	104
Central African Republic	2
Chad	1
Chile	173
China Peoples Republic	112
Colombia	84
Congo	2
Cook Islands	7
Costa Rica	48
Cote D’Ivoire	2
Cuba	6
Democratic Republic of the Congo	2
Djibouti	100
Dominica Commonwealth	1,099
Dominican Republic	35
Ecuador	44
Egypt	156
El Salvador	9
Ethiopia	27
Falkland Islands and Dependencies	38
Faroe Islands	8
Fiji	75
Gambia	76
Ghana	778
Greenland	1
Grenada	1,514
Guatemala	9
Guinea	2
Guyana	438
Haiti	1
Honduras	8
Hong Kong	1,097
India	4,139
Indonesia	86
Iran	15
Iraq	7
Japan	324
Jordan	47
Kampuchea	6
Kenya	593
Kiribati	3
Kuwait	40
Lebanon	59
Lesotho	7
Liberia	2
Libya	2
Macau	10
Malagasy Republic	6
Malawi	86
Malaysia	446
Maldive Islands	2
Mexico	301
Monaco	293
Mongolia	2
Montserrat	143
Morocco	86
Mozambique	3
Namibia	41
Nepal	25
Nevis St Kitts	503
New Caledonia	4
New Zealand	44,965
Nicaragua	7
Niger	1
Nigeria	2,410
Norfolk Island	8
Oman	51
Pakistan	4,969
Panama	21
Papua New Guinea	16
Paraguay	21
Peru	90
Qatar	27
Republic of Armenia	2
Republic of Azerbaijan	2
Republic of Belarus	20
Republic of Kazakhstan	1
Republic of Kyrgyzstan	1
Republic of Moldova	3
Republic of Tajikistan	1
Republic of Turkmenistan	2
Republic of Uzbekistan	2
Republic of Yemen	2,779
Romania	22
Rwanda	1
San Marino	1
Sarawak	2
Saudi Arabia	140
Senegal	7
Seychelles	90
Sharjah	1
Sierra Leone	96
Singapore	279
Solomon Islands	8
Somalia	48
South Africa	36,558
South Korea	14
Sri Lanka	586
St Helena and Dependencies	71
St Lucia	1,370
St Martins	1
St Vincent and Grenadines	812
Sudan	4
Surinam	3
Swaziland	94
Syria	24
Tahiti	2
Taiwan	17
Tanzania	56
Thailand	1,019
The Russian Federation	87
Togo	7
Tonga	10
Trinidad and Tobago	1,257
Tunisia	23
Turks and Caicos Islands	19
Uganda	65
Ukraine	228
Uruguay	33
Vanuatu	21
Venezuela	79
Vietnam	9
Virgin Islands (British)	47
Western Samoa	7
Zambia	178
Zimbabwe	2,809
Source: DWP caseload data—October 2005

Although most reciprocal agreements provide for payment of upratings, that is not their primary purpose. They are intended mainly to provide a measure of co-ordination between social security schemes to protect the social security of workers moving between the two countries during their working lives. They prevent employees, their employers and the self-employed having to pay social security contributions to both the home state and the state of residence at the same time.From 1981 to the present day, successive UK governments have taken the view that no new commitments should be entered into to seek to negotiate new agreements with other countries that would include provision for the payment of social security, benefits to persons abroad, including the uprating of UK state pensions abroad. Most of the UK’s existing agreements are in fact consolidations of earlier long-standing ones and were entered into with a view to administrative improvements and efficiencies and also to take into account developments and changes to both countries’ schemes over time, rather than to extend the scope for payment of increased amounts of benefits abroad.As shown in the table above, the UK state pension is paid to over half a million people residing in over 100 different countries outside the EEA with which the UK does not have a reciprocal social security agreement covering uprating of the state pension. Around 90 per cent of these overseas pensioners reside in Australia, Canada, New Zealand or South Africa.Only limited information is available on the rules applicable to the export of pensions from these four countries. Such information as is available is as follows:In Australia, the tax-funded, residence-based age pension is payable outside Australia but only if it was claimed while the person was resident in Australia; it cannot be claimed from outside Australia other than from a country with which Australia has a reciprocal agreement. In contrast the UK state pension can be claimed from anywhere in the world.In Canada, benefits under the contributory Canada pension plan are payable to people who live outside Canada and are uprated once a year in January. The residence-based, tax-funded old age security pension can be paid indefinitely outside Canada provided the pensioner has lived in Canada for at least 20 years after reaching 18 years of age.The arrangements in New Zealand are that the tax-funded New Zealand superannuation is generally payable outside New Zealand at 50 per cent of the rate payable in the country. As with Australia, it is paid only to people who claimed the pension while resident in the country. However, the rate payable to those moving to a country with which New Zealand has a reciprocal agreement will depend on the terms of the agreement.There is no universal contributory pension scheme in South Africa. However there are some income-tested social security benefits, including social pensions for the elderly. Payment is subject to a stringent income test, meaning that only those at the bottom of the economic scale are entitled to receive benefits, which are generally uprated once a year, usually in April. The benefits are not payable outside South Africa.The table below shows the estimated costs of uprating state pensions paid to people residing in countries where it is not currently uprated.

Year	Additional cost of uprating
2005–06	£20,000,000
2006–07	£50,000,000
2007–08	£70,000,000
2008–09	£100,000,000
2009–10	£130,000,000
Source: Forecast expenditure figures based upon DWP retirement pension administrative data, HM Treasury short-term retail prices index forecasts and GAD overseas pensioner forecasts.

Reliable long-term estimates are not available. However, the costs would increase significantly over future years.

Date

26 October 2005

Reference

1722; 674 c189-92WA

House

House of Lords

Pensions: Reciprocal Uprating Agreements

What are the total amounts of United Kingdom pensions and the number of recipients currently being paid to residents of countries with which the United Kingdom (a) does, and (b) does not have reciprocal agreements to uprate pension payments; and

Asked by

Lord Oakeshott of Seagrove Bay (Liberal Democrat)

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Answered on

19 July 2005

The UK currently has reciprocal agreements which provide for the uprating of state pension with the following countries: Barbados; Bermuda; Bosnia-Herzegovina; Croatia; Isle of Man; Israel; Jamaica; Jersey and Guernsey; Mauritius; Philippines; State Union of Serbia and Montenegro; Turkey; USA and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. Although they have generally been superseded by EC Social Security Regulations which provide for uprating of state pensions for European Economic Area (EEA) and Swiss nationals moving between the UK and other member countries, the UK also has reciprocal agreements which provide for uprating of state pensions with the following countries: Austria; Belgium; Cyprus; Finland; France; Germany; Gibraltar; Iceland; Ireland; Italy; Luxembourg; Malta; the Netherlands; Norway; Portugal; Slovenia; Spain; Sweden and Switzerland.Over the past 20 years the UK has entered into reciprocal agreements providing for the uprating of state pensions with the following countries: Barbados (1992); Iceland (1985); Norway (1991); Philippines (1989) and Sweden (1988). The agreements with Iceland, Norway and Sweden have since been superseded by the EC Social Security Regulations. No agreements providing for the uprating of state pensions have been terminated.At 31 September 2004 around 990,000 state pension recipients were living overseas of whom around 470,000 were residing in the EEA or in a country with which UK has a reciprocal agreement covering the uprating of pensions and around 520,000 were residing elsewhere including around 240,000 in Australia and 38,000 in South Africa.In 2004–05 the UK spent an estimated £1.9 billion on state pensions paid overseas, of this around £1.1 billion went to people residing in the EEA or in a country with which UK has a reciprocal agreement covering the uprating of pensions and around £800 million went to people residing elsewhere including £358 million to people in Australia and £66 million to people in South Africa. It is estimated that the cost of ““unfreezing”” pensions paid to people residing outside the EEA and countries with which the UK has a reciprocal agreement is (without backdating) around £400 million per annum increasing over time.At 31 September 2004 around 2,000 state pension recipients were residing in the British Overseas Territories which comprise: Anguilla; British Antarctic Territory; Bermuda; British Indian Ocean Territory; British Virgin Islands; Cayman Islands; Falkland Islands; Gibraltar; Montserrat; St Helena and dependencies (Ascension Island and Tristan da Cunha); Turk and Caicos Islands; Pitcairn Island; South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands; and the sovereign base areas on Cyprus. State pensions paid to recipients living in Bermuda; Gibraltar and the sovereign base areas on Cyprus are subject to uprating.In 2004–05 the UK spent an estimated £5.5 million on state pensions paid to people residing in the British Overseas Territories.

Date

19 July 2005

Reference

1150; 673 c232-3WA

House

House of Lords

Librarians' tools

Type

House

Session

Year

Department

Member

Primary member

Answering member

Legislative stage

Legislation

Subject

Publisher