International pensions after leaving the UK

Your situation

• A UK company or personal pension built up over a career, and a move to Dubai that is already decided.
• An adviser, often unsolicited, proposing a transfer to an overseas scheme.
• A wish to pass the pension on to children, and a new UK inheritance tax rule arriving in 2027.
• A State Pension due in a few years, and a question about whether it rises each year abroad.

The schemes, in plain terms

• A registered UK scheme is your existing pension. You can leave it where it is and draw it from the UAE.
• A QROPS or ROPS (recognised overseas pension scheme) is an overseas scheme that has told HMRC it meets the conditions to receive a transfer from a UK scheme. HMRC publishes the list twice a month but says it does not vouch for any scheme on it, and that it is up to you to check. A transfer to a scheme that is not recognised can be taxed at 40% or more. No scheme in the United Arab Emirates appears on the list as at 15 October 2026. [1]
• A QNUPS (qualifying non-UK pension scheme) is an overseas scheme that meets UK conditions for inheritance tax treatment. [4]

Where people get caught

1. The 25% overseas transfer charge. A transfer from a UK scheme to a QROPS is charged at 25% unless an exclusion applies, for example where you are tax resident in the country where the scheme is established. The exclusion for schemes in the EEA and Gibraltar was removed for transfers on or after 30 October 2024. Even where an exclusion applies, 25% is charged on any value above your overseas transfer allowance, standard £1,073,100. [2][3]
2. Inheritance tax from 6 April 2027. The Finance Act 2026, passed on 18 March 2026, brings unused pension funds into UK inheritance tax for deaths on or after 6 April 2027. It covers registered UK schemes and QNUPS. Your personal representatives, not the scheme, pay the tax. HMRC's guidance on international cases was expected in autumn 2026 and final guidance in spring 2027. [5]
3. Who taxes the income. Under the 2016 UK–UAE double taxation convention, a pension paid to a UAE resident is taxable only in the UAE (Article 17), except most government-service pensions (Article 18). The UAE levies no income tax on individuals. Relief from UK tax has to be claimed, with a UAE tax residency certificate. Whether the State Pension falls within Article 17 is a question for the adviser. [6][7]
4. The frozen State Pension. The UK State Pension can be claimed from the UAE, but it does not rise each year there: increases are paid only in the EEA, Gibraltar, Switzerland and countries with a qualifying social security agreement, and the UAE is not one. It returns to the current rate if you move back. [8]
5. Scams. The UK regulator warns of promised returns, pressure to decide quickly, unusual or unregulated investments, complicated structures with several firms taking a fee, some based overseas, and "free pension reviews". Cold calls about pensions are illegal in the UK. [9]

Questions a licensed adviser must answer before you act

• What does a transfer cost in UK tax today, on my figures, and what does leaving the pension where it is cost?
• Which exclusion from the 25% charge, if any, applies to me, and will it still apply if I move again within 5 tax years?
• Is the receiving scheme on HMRC's list, and in which country is it established?
• How does the 2027 inheritance tax rule apply to my scheme, and what does my will need to say?
• How will my pension income be taxed in the UAE and the UK under the treaty, and what do I file to claim relief?
• Which regulator authorises you, and what are your fees, in writing?

The UAE side

The UAE has no personal income tax. Private-sector and free zone employers may opt into a voluntary federal savings scheme in place of end-of-service gratuity, paying 5.83% or 8.33% of basic salary into an approved fund, and employees may add to it. In the DIFC, the DEWS savings plan has replaced the gratuity since February 2020. [7][10]

What we do

• We set out where your pensions sit in the wider plan: residence, the sale of a business, your UK property and your estate, with the dates each decision must meet.
• We list the questions above for your own figures, so the adviser's work starts from a complete picture.
• We coordinate the pension adviser's work with your UK tax adviser, your lawyer and the rest of the plan, to one timetable.

We do not advise on, arrange, recommend or sell pensions or pension products.

What a licensed partner does

• A pension adviser regulated in the UK or the UAE advises whether to leave, draw or transfer, and arranges any scheme. You appoint and contract with it directly.
• A UK tax adviser confirms the UK tax on each option and files the treaty claim.
• A law firm updates your will for the 2027 rule.

Under a Full Mandate, we run the whole plan.

Related guides

• Is there a UK exit tax? →
• UK inheritance tax for non-residents →
• Am I still UK tax resident? →
• Moving to the UAE from the UK →

Questions people ask

Can I transfer my UK pension to Dubai?

Only to a scheme HMRC recognises, and no UAE scheme appears on HMRC's list as at 15 October 2026. A transfer to a recognised scheme elsewhere attracts a 25% charge unless an exclusion applies. A licensed pension adviser assesses your case. [1][2]

Is my UK pension taxed if I live in Dubai?

Under the UK–UAE treaty, most pensions paid to a UAE resident are taxable only in the UAE, which has no personal income tax. Government-service pensions are usually taxed by the UK. Relief must be claimed. [6][7]

Does the UK State Pension increase if I live in the UAE?

No. The UAE is not a country where yearly increases are paid. The pension returns to the current rate if you move back to the UK. [8]

Will my pension be subject to UK inheritance tax?

For deaths on or after 6 April 2027, unused funds in registered UK schemes and QNUPS come within UK inheritance tax, under the Finance Act 2026. [5]