The purpose of a SIPP, as with any pension, is to provide you with a tax efficient vehicle to build sufficient funds for you to secure your retirement income. Furthermore from age 50 (increasing to 55 from 2010) your SIPP can provide you with a tax free lump sum and a flexible income. SIPPs key characteristics are those of control, choice and flexibility. We believe that a SIPP is exactly what a pension should be: an investment vehicle with generous tax breaks that works for you and is controlled by you. A SIPP is relatively simple; it works on the same rules that apply to personal pensions but with some important improvements. Some of the more interesting differences are the ability to invest in commercial property, borrow money to invest and transfer assets in and out of your SIPP. By transferring or contributing funds to a SIPP you are separating the process of administrating the pension and that of investing the assets held within the pension. This gives you control by allowing you to build a diverse portfolio of investments that can be changed whenever required. Additionally you can transfer freely between SIPP providers. To find out how SIPPs can work for you call us on 0870 777 0368. Types of SIPP Different SIPPs offer varying levels of access to direct, collective, insurance-based and property investment vehicles. Broadly speaking, SIPPs fall into one of two types: narrowly focused, low-cost SIPPs with limited access to collective investments and share transactions or fully flexible, personally managed SIPPs that take advantage of the full SIPP rules. Often the larger SIPP providers are stricter in how they work to these rules; the bigger they are, the less flexible they can afford to be. Smaller, specialist providers can be much more accommodating, when it comes to working to your requirements, whilst making sure that you do not break the rules. To see which SIPP is right for you call us on 0870 777 0368.