OAP Increase 2016.

[Charlie Hannah]

My Oz pension is $790 per fortnight UK pension 32pound 26 pence weekly i draw it quarterly $915-38.Depending of course on the exchange rate at the time. I'm happy with that does me i have a couple irons in the fire.So not a bad old life.even Skeeter is pleased with his lot!The irons in the fire i mention are all known to centerlink.you get nothing passed them as they are notified of all cash movements one has.

[j.sabourn]

#21... What day do you give the subs out Charlie, is the 790 for yourself and wife (if still alive) or just yourself ? I have always been dead straight with CL but do know people who arent. The last time I looked my CL pension was 420 per fortnight and the wife also gets the same. All depends on the rate of exchange on the UK ones. Have nothing really to complain about, apart from having still to pay on an average of 1500 dollars a year in tax every July, which I never pay until about january in any case as believe you are allowed until February to pay. If I didnt know better would think the planet was warming up as per the Gurus claim, been very Hot here the past week or so, still making more with the solar panels about 7 kilowatts a day helps to pay the air conditioner bill. Cheers JS

[Fouro]

SERPS- State Earnings Related Pension Scheme.
In order to qualify, you had to be working to pay into the Additional State Pension (SERPS). On retirement, one received an additional SERPS payment added to their Basic State Pension. Many people chose "to contract out" of SERPS. This meant that they made contributions to Private Pension Schemes which reduced or eliminated their entitlement to SERPS.
According to the figures quoted, looks like some of you decided "to contract out" of SERPS.

FOURO.

[j.sabourn]

When did serps start. I remember paying graduated extras to the NHI. From about 87 I was partially on FG vessels on FOC and paid my own stamp, and from 88 to 91 was on a daily rate, stamps paid by the Employer. In 91 skinned out of the country. Had paid I think 38 years of NHI, so was 2 years short of the full pension which would of been 75 pounds. Instead got 73. The MNOPF on British ships one paid 5 per cent of earnings to and the employer paid 7.5 percent. They have a similar system for all hands in the Australian agreements, and in my 11 years working with such saw ABs walking away with an average of 550,000 dollars after 25 years service. I would imagine if the Seamans union of the UK had invested the money that some paid into, they should have walked away with something similar. Believe there is some controversy over this however. As I have said I found no fault with such union agreements in Oz, apart from a few bolshie members that thought they could do as they liked, which you find in every walk of life. I have had out more than I put in to the MNOPF and should imagine those who run the fund are probably saying I wish he would hurry up and die and save us some money. On death however if you are survived by a wife she still gets 50 percent of your MNOPF pension. Dont know what would happen if you were married to a bloke however, as some countries still do not reconize such forms of wedlock, be one for the uman rights to fight over. JS

[happy daze john in oz]

I did read that the UK wants the basic pension to be GBP140 per wek.

When I left UK I was informed I would require 20 years to get the full pension. But the goal posts were moved and when the day came I was told I needed 40 years so only get about 50% which is around $415 per month. State pension is not bad at around $1135 per fortnight for the two of us, that is about 88% of the full pension. Then there is the super on top of that.

Some people have their pension rated on assets, the more you have the less pension, others like us on income.

But we do get two increases per year in the basic pension, March and September, was at one time based on the average weekly wage but is now based on the rate of inflation.

[vic mcclymont]

Serps has been around in various guises since the sixties. I remember in the mid sixties receiving a letter from the government pensions department stating that as I contributed an additional forty pounds, I would receive an extra six pence on retirement.

[Fouro]

Re # 24.
SERPS started in 1978 and ended in 2002 when New Labour introduced what was called the Second State Pension.
Alistair Darling the New Labour chancellor upset millions of pensioners when he decided to freeze the payments of SERPS and the Second State Pension in 2010.
Those same millions of upset pensioners soon got their revenge via the ballot box, when New Labour was ousted from power in the General Election in May 2010.

FOURO.

[Red Lead Ted]

whatever you do be careful about combining pension pots.there are advisers out there who will take large fees for doing this and dissipate your total fund.It may be advisable to just take the pensions from their exsisting provider and stagger the onset of each pot look at doing a drawdown.As far as anyone born after 1956 not receiving a state pension.Load of crap!!!!!!

John good advice i havnt signed on the dotted line with anyone yet and take it from me i wont until i have looked into every angle. As for anyone born after April 1956.................I read the letter with my own eyes Terry.

[Dennis McGuckin]

I receive $420 per month from the UK.
Fifteen years of working there.
It includes my sea time.
My late wife, who was a nurse, receive about the same.
Happy enough with that.

[Charlie Hannah]

#21... What day do you give the subs out Charlie, is the 790 for yourself and wife (if still alive) or just yourself ? I have always been dead straight with CL but do know people who arent. The last time I looked my CL pension was 420 per fortnight and the wife also gets the same. All depends on the rate of exchange on the UK ones. Have nothing really to complain about, apart from having still to pay on an average of 1500 dollars a year in tax every July, which I never pay until about january in any case as believe you are allowed until February to pay. If I didnt know better would think the planet was warming up as per the Gurus claim, been very Hot here the

past week or so, still making more with the solar panels about 7 kilowatts a day helps to pay the air conditioner bill.
Cheers JS

$790 is paid fortnightly John Single the supplement is in with that john the lousy rate you get off your investments now has made a big difference to what i get now i get near enough to the full pension now when the rate was up i was around $230 bucks less than full rate.Married couple get$1.307.00 that's made up of $1188.60maximum basic rate,$97.20Max PENSION SUPPLEMENT,$21.20 energy supplement.Single Gets$788.40 plus $64.50,Plus $14.10,Total$867.00.
I pay tax on earnings from investments but claim most back,Don't pay anything for my air condition John i go natural open all doors and windows.Works for me.cheers.