If you have ever tried to move a UK pension while living in Portugal, you may have met the “amber flag”: a letter telling you your transfer is paused until you book a scam guidance appointment, often for no better reason than your new pension holds global funds. The UK pension transfer rules behind that letter are now being rewritten, and for expats the changes are mostly good news.

On 3 November 2026 the UK government published its response to a consultation on the transfer regulations, confirming it will press ahead broadly as proposed. In this article I explain what the current rules are, what is changing, what is staying exactly as it is, and what I would do if I had a transfer planned in the next year. I will also be clear about what has not yet been confirmed, because the detailed regulations have not been published.

How the UK pension transfer rules work today

Since 30 November 2021, UK pension trustees and providers have had a legal duty to check a transfer before letting it go. The rules sit in the Conditions for Transfers Regulations 2021, and they were brought in to tackle pension scams. The intention was sound. Before 2021, a scheme often had to pay a transfer even when it had real concerns about where the money was heading.

The rules work through two “conditions”. The first is a fast lane: if you are moving to a public service scheme, an authorised master trust or an authorised collective scheme, the transfer can simply proceed. Everything else falls under the second condition, where the scheme you are leaving must look for warning signs, known as red and amber flags.

A red flag stops the transfer as a statutory right. Red flags include being cold-called or contacted unsolicited about the transfer, being offered an incentive to move, being pressured to act quickly, or taking advice from a firm without the right regulatory permissions.

An amber flag pauses the transfer. It can only go ahead once you have attended a pension safeguarding appointment with MoneyHelper (run by the Money and Pensions Service, or MaPS) and shown your old scheme proof that you did. Amber flags include high-risk or unregulated investments in the new scheme, unclear or unusually high fees, unorthodox investment structures and, crucially for expats, the presence of overseas investments in the receiving scheme.

Why expats in Portugal have been caught so often

That last flag is the one I see most in practice. Read literally, “overseas investments” covers almost any modern, diversified pension. A global equity tracker holds American, European and Japanese shares. So does nearly every multi-asset fund on every mainstream platform. None of that is a sign of a scam, yet it technically ticks the box.

For a British expat in the Algarve, the usual reason for transferring is practical. Your old workplace scheme will not pay into a Portuguese bank account, will not offer flexible drawdown, or will not deal with a non-UK resident at all. The natural home is often an international SIPP (a UK-registered self-invested personal pension designed for people living abroad), invested in a globally spread portfolio, sometimes with euro-denominated holdings so your income matches your spending.

That is a perfectly sensible arrangement, and it has routinely triggered an amber flag. The result is a delay of weeks while you book and attend a guidance call about scams, for a transfer that has already been through regulated advice. I have had clients who found the process baffling, and a few who wondered whether they were being accused of something. They were not. The scheme was simply following the letter of the regulations.

There is a second way expats get caught. If you transfer to an overseas scheme (a QROPS, which is a qualifying recognised overseas pension scheme), you are asked to show a residency link: broadly, that you have been resident in the same country as the scheme for at least six months. If you cannot evidence it, that is an amber flag too.

What the government has now confirmed

The Department for Work and Pensions consulted on changes between 9 June and 21 July 2026, and published its response on 3 November 2026. You can find the consultation and the response on GOV.UK. Based on the response and the summaries published by pension law firms since, these are the main points.

• The overseas investments amber flag is being removed. The government’s view is that holding overseas investments is not a reliable indicator of scam risk. Other flags already cover high-risk, unregulated or unclear investments.
• A wider fast lane for “reputable” schemes. The first condition will be extended so that a transfer can proceed without the flag checks where the trustees are satisfied, on the balance of probabilities, that the receiving scheme is reputable. A non-exhaustive list of factors to help trustees make that judgement is to be developed by the government and the Pensions Regulator.
• A 12-month exemption from repeat guidance. If you have already had a MaPS scam guidance appointment in the previous 12 months, you should not have to sit through another one for a later transfer. The exception is transfers to small self-administered schemes.
• Tougher treatment of small self-administered schemes (SSASs). These are small occupational schemes, normally set up by company directors, and they have been a favoured vehicle for fraud. Where the evidence does not show a real employment link with the SSAS, that becomes a red flag and the transfer is blocked. Even where the link is shown, an amber flag applies and guidance is required.

The changes are expected to come into force in April 2027. That date depends on amending regulations which, at the time of writing, have not yet been laid before Parliament. Until they are, the precise wording and the exact start date are not confirmed, and the supporting guidance for trustees has not been published either.

What is not changing

It would be easy to read the headlines and assume transfers are about to become a formality. They are not, and several things that matter to expats stay as they are.

The incentives red flag stays. Parts of the industry asked for it to be dropped, because ordinary cashback offers from mainstream providers were blocking legitimate transfers. The government chose to keep it, on the basis that incentives and scams often go together. If anyone offers you a payment, a “free pension review” or early access to cash for moving your pension, expect the transfer to be stopped, and frankly be glad that it is.

The other amber flags remain. High-risk or unregulated investments, unclear or high charges and unorthodox structures will all still pause a transfer. If you are being steered towards overseas property schemes, unlisted loan notes or anything you cannot easily value and sell, the system is still designed to slow you down.

The residency link for overseas schemes. I have not seen anything in the response to suggest the residency test for transfers to a QROPS is being relaxed. Until the regulations are published, I would assume it stays.

The overseas transfer charge is a separate matter entirely. This is the 25% tax charge HMRC can apply to transfers to a QROPS, and it has nothing to do with the scam-prevention flags. Since the rules were tightened at the end of October 2024, simply living in the same country or region as the scheme no longer exempts you in the way it once did. Removing an amber flag does not remove a tax charge.

The advice requirement for defined benefit pensions. If you have a final salary pension, or any pension with guaranteed benefits, worth more than £30,000, you must still take advice from a suitably authorised UK adviser before transferring. That rule is unaffected.

What this means if you are planning a transfer

For most of my clients the practical effect will be simple: fewer pointless delays. A transfer from a UK workplace pension to a well-run, UK-regulated international SIPP holding mainstream global funds should, from next April, be far less likely to be paused for a guidance appointment.

Should you wait until April 2027? In most cases, no. An amber flag is an inconvenience, not a barrier. The MoneyHelper appointment is free, usually takes under an hour, and you can do it by phone or video from Portugal. If there are good reasons to transfer now, such as access to drawdown, a provider who will no longer deal with you as a non-resident, or charges that are eating into your pot, a few weeks of delay is a small price. Markets, exchange rates and your own plans will move far more in six months than this rule change is worth.

If your transfer is not urgent, though, and you know your receiving scheme will trip the overseas investments flag, there is no harm in timing it for after the new regulations are in force. Just keep an eye on whether April 2027 holds.

Whenever you transfer, a few habits make the process smoother:

• Answer the ceding scheme’s questionnaire fully and promptly. Failing to provide requested information is itself a red flag.
• Keep evidence of your regulated advice, including the adviser’s firm reference number.
• If you are asked to take MoneyHelper guidance, book it immediately and keep the confirmation, because your old scheme needs to see it.
• Check who you are dealing with. A UK-regulated firm appears on the FCA Register, and a firm advising you in Portugal should be properly authorised to do so here.

A word on scams

None of this should make anyone relax about fraud. Expats are a prime target: we are often cash-rich, far from our old advisers, and used to dealing with financial matters remotely. The flags that remain are aimed squarely at the tactics scammers actually use, which are unsolicited contact, pressure, incentives and exotic investments.

My own rule of thumb is that a good transfer is boring. It moves your money from one regulated, transparent scheme to another, into investments you could explain to a friend over coffee, at a cost you were told about in writing beforehand. If any of those elements is missing, stop and ask questions. MoneyHelper has clear, impartial guidance on spotting pension scams if you would like a second opinion.

Frequently Asked Questions

When do the new UK pension transfer rules start?

The government has said it expects the changes to come into force in April 2027. The amending regulations have not yet been laid before Parliament, so the exact date and final wording are not confirmed. Until then, the existing 2021 rules continue to apply to every transfer.

Will my transfer to an international SIPP still get an amber flag?

It may do until the new rules take effect, because the overseas investments flag remains in force for now. Once it is removed, a SIPP holding mainstream global funds should be much less likely to be flagged. Other amber flags, such as unregulated investments or unclear fees, will still apply where relevant.

Do the changes affect the 25% overseas transfer charge?

No. The overseas transfer charge is a tax rule administered by HMRC and applies to certain transfers to overseas schemes (QROPS). The changes described here concern scam-prevention checks only. A transfer between two UK-registered pension schemes, including to an international SIPP, is not subject to the overseas transfer charge.

Can I do the MoneyHelper guidance appointment from Portugal?

Yes. The pension safeguarding appointment can be held by phone or video, so you do not need to be in the UK. It is free, and you will be given confirmation to pass on to the scheme you are leaving.

Can my old scheme still refuse my transfer?

Yes. If a red flag is present, for example an incentive, unsolicited contact or unregulated advice, the scheme can refuse the transfer as a statutory right. That will remain the case after April 2027.

What to Do Next

The UK pension transfer rules are being made more sensible for people like us: the overseas investments flag is going, reputable schemes get a faster route, and the real effort is being pointed at the schemes most often used for fraud. The details are not final until the regulations are published, so treat April 2027 as expected rather than certain, and do not put a good decision on hold just to avoid a guidance call.

If you would like to talk through a transfer you are considering, get in touch with our team, or visit our homepage to see how we help UK expats in Portugal make the most of their pensions and investments.

This article is general information only and is not personal financial advice. It reflects our understanding of the government’s published response as at 11 November 2026; the regulations have not yet been laid and details may change. Please take advice before acting.

Matthew Renier is a Chartered Financial Adviser at Arthur Browns Wealth Management, based in the Algarve, Portugal, helping British expats manage their pensions and financial planning across borders.

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