Tax year end FAQs

With the end of this tax year fast approaching, you may well be planning to remind your clients of the pension and investment opportunities that are available to them.

Tax year end deadline

When are the pension payment deadlines?

11 March 2024

If you have any clients who are considering taking pension benefits, and who require a pension commencement lump sum (PCLS) payment prior to tax year end, then please send us the completed benefit form by 11 March 2024. Please note that payment of a PCLS is dependent on the SIPP being valued, all transfers being received and cash being available to cover the payment. Funds will also need to be available to cover any corresponding income payment.

15 March 2024

If any of your clients wish to convert to flexi-access from capped drawdown before taking an income payment from their SIPP, please ensure that a completed flexi-access conversion form is sent to us by 15 March 2024. Funds will also need to be available to cover the income payment.

If you have any clients who are considering taking an uncrystallised funds pension lump sum (UFPLS) payment prior to tax year end, then please send us a completed UFPLS form by 15 March 2024. Please note that payment of an UFPLS is dependent on the SIPP being valued, all transfers being received and cash being available to cover the payment.

28 March 2024

If you have any clients who are already taking benefits from their SIPP, and who would like to take a one-off income payment prior to tax year end, please ensure that you request the payment online by no later than 12 noon on 28 March 2024. Any payments requested after this may fall into the next tax year. You must also ensure that sufficient cleared funds are available in your client’s SIPP cash account by this date.

Although we’re updating all our benefit forms in response to the removal of the lifetime allowance, we’ll continue to accept the current versions of the forms for a one-month ‘grace’ period, up to 5 May 2024.

If you have any clients who are already taking benefits from their SIPP and who would like to take a one-off income payment prior to tax year end between 12 noon on 28 March 2024 and 10am on 1 April 2024, then this must be requested by CHAPS. Any payments requested after 10am on 1 April 2024 may fall into the next tax year.

How do I transfer in without delay?

If you have recently submitted a new transfer in request to us, it may speed the transfer process up if you chase the ceding provider. We will also continue to chase the transfer.

29 March 2024

If your client would like to make a gift transfer, please email us by 29 March 2024 to request the transfer on their behalf.

What is the quickest way to request a withdrawal?

The quickest way to request a withdrawal is via the AJ Bell Investcentre website. You should allow one to three working days for the payment to be made. In some cases, we may need to phone your client or their nominated contact in order to validate the request, so please make sure they will be available to take our call if the payment is urgent.

You can request a withdrawal online even if there are insufficient funds available. In such cases, the one to three working day timeframe applies from when the funds become available, rather than the day you submit the request.

Before requesting any withdrawal payments, please make sure we hold the correct, verified bank details for your client. Remember, you can now add new client bank details online – however, if we can’t verify their details electronically, we will require a hard copy bank statement.

How do I make a payment?

We always experience a rush of new applications and additional payments (including online payments) for SIPPs, ISAs and JISAs in the run-up to our tax year end deadline of 5 April 2024. If you could get all the necessary forms completed and sent over to us well in advance, and ensure we are in physical receipt of cheques by 5 April 2024, it would be greatly appreciated.

There are a number of ways in which payments can be made to a client’s account(s).

Online payments for clients with an existing SIPP, ISA or GIA

Online payments are by far the most convenient way to move money into your client’s account(s). As well as removing the requirement for any paperwork to be submitted, this method also helps to prevent any delays in funds being applied to your client’s account(s).

To make an online payment, simply go to the ‘Client dashboard’, then select the ‘Additional contribution/subscription/payment’ facility and follow the instructions.

The relevant bank details and a unique payment reference will be provided as part of this process; please quote the unique reference(s) on the payment(s) for reconciliation purposes.

Bear in mind that the payment reference is unique to each individual payment, so please don’t use any previous references. If the above process isn’t completed and a different reference is used for the payment, it will delay the funds being credited to your client’s account.

If your client will be making multiple payments to achieve the intended payment amount, they should use the same reference for each payment.

Funding an ISA from a GIA

One of the easiest and quickest ways to make an ISA subscription is by moving funds directly from a client’s GIA into their ISA. The ‘Move cash between accounts’ facility is located on the ‘Client account summary’ page, and only requires a few steps to complete.

Is there a deadline for submitting a Bed and ISA over the phone?

The latest we’ll be able to take any instruction for a BISA will be 11am on 2 April 2024. This is because we need three working days to process a fund BISA or manage a share BISA. We’ll try our hardest to process any instructions that come in after 11am on 2 April 2024, but can’t guarantee we’ll get them done before tax year end.

If you decide to process a BISA by yourself online, please be wary of the fund dealing times and cash settlement period for the ISA subscriptions. Due to the bank holidays over Easter, we would advise you to make sure your BISA instructions are processed by 27 March 2024.

Please note that trades need to have settled in your client’s account prior to 5 April 2024 in order for you to have enough time to place a product switch before the end of the tax year.

Will there be extended support during tax year end?

Our Adviser Support Team will be extending its opening hours in the run-up to 5 April 2024. Staff will be available between 8am and 7pm from 2 April to 5 April 2024.

If you have any questions regarding the above, please email us on enquiry@investcentre.co.uk or contact our Adviser Support Team on 0345 839 9060.

Five time-saving platform tips for tax year end

As tax year end approaches, Greg Morton, Business Development Manager, is here with quick-fire tips to help you get the most out of our platform. From identifying total ISA allowance remaining to setting up our new withdrawals process and more, Greg is here to help you save time during this busy period.

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