Ian Browne: Why the lifetime allowance should be £4.8m

‘Return to policy objective or scrap it altogether”

clock • 3 min read

A growing number of pension savers are penalised by the taxman for exceeding their lifetime allowance (LTA). But this was never the intention of the LTA and should be reformed urgently, writes Ian Browne

A Freedom of Information request recently revealed that tax paid to the Exchequer by pension savers who have exceeded their Lifetime Allowance (LTA) has increased by 80 per cent. The LTA, which was only supposed to impact 5,000 wealthy people when it was first published in 2002, is now a tax on the retirement funds of thousands of ordinary people thanks to its reduction to £1m in April 2016. This means a growing number of taxpayers who have prepared for their retirement by saving up are now being penalised for their forward thinking by the tax system. This was never the intention of the ...

To continue reading this article...

Join Professional Adviser for free

  • Unlimited access to real-time news, industry insights and market intelligence
  • Stay ahead of the curve with spotlights on emerging trends and technologies
  • Receive breaking news stories straight to your inbox in the daily newsletters
  • Make smart business decisions with the latest developments in regulation, investing retirement and protection
  • Members-only access to the editor’s weekly Friday commentary
  • Be the first to hear about our events and awards programmes

Join

 

Already a Professional Adviser member?

Login

More on Pensions

Why the pensions dashboard could raise more questions than it answers

Why the pensions dashboard could raise more questions than it answers

The 31 October connection deadline was a 'starting gun rather than the finish line'

Robert Holford
clock 09 November 2026 • 4 min read
Pension Lab processes more than one million digital LoAs

Pension Lab processes more than one million digital LoAs

Challenge around ‘standards for consistency’

Sophia Panayi
clock 06 November 2026 • 1 min read
DWP, TPR and FCA launch consultation on guided retirement to help 'resurrect' pensions

DWP, TPR and FCA launch consultation on guided retirement to help 'resurrect' pensions

Consultation covers how default pensions should work in practice

Holly Roach
clock 03 November 2026 • 6 min read