AKA Is this the end for pension tax relief.
Well, probably not.
However, the subject is in the news again.
Back in 2016 The rumour mill went into overdrive that the end was nigh for higher rate tax relief on pension contributions. So much so, that record amounts were being put into pensions to grab the generous tax breaks before they disappeared.
Such was the hysteria that George Osbourne announced on a Saturday morning (interrupting my holiday!) that pension tax relief was here to stay.
So will history repeat itself?
Will this be much ado about nothing (again)?
Who knows? I suspect tax relief will stay in some form, but we are in unprecedented times.
The cost of the Coronavirus dwarfs anything we’ve seen before and is likely to be felt for generations. Therefore it does make sense that something may have to give.
We have a phrase at T&H that nobody will march in the street against that.. I do think that the removal of pension tax relief, particularly higher rate relief, could be seen as an easy target.
When you also consider that the current government doesn’t have to call another election for another four years, then some tough unpopular choices look easier now than a year or two down the line.
So, whilst I would never advocate acting in haste when it comes to investing or (as some might say) allowing the tail to wag the dog……
Make Hay while the sun shines .
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