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What happens to my pension when I die?

Make sure your loved ones are looked after when you’re no longer around.

Take action today... update your Nomination Form

  • If you are currently employed by BNP Paribas click here
  • If you are a former employee of BNP Paribas click here

Your pension and employer-provided life assurance are in most cases payable at the discretion of the Trustees. They do not normally form part of your estate or your Will.

But unlike other assets you might hold - like a property or other savings - pension assets are subject to their own rules when it comes to passing them on in the event of death, and the rules are different depending on the type of pension in question. You should note, tax rules may change in the future and any tax treatment depends on individual circumstances.

With life assurance cover included in your Spectrum benefits, you need to explain your choice of beneficiaries fully and keep your information up to date, or the Trustees may not be able to fully honour your wishes. You can nominate your beneficiaries in Spectrum. Please keep this updated as and when your circumstances change. 

What the Trustees do

The Trustees who look after our life cover have a legal duty to investigate and make sure the money is being paid to the right people. 

As the benefit is paid at the discretion of the Trustees, the amount payable does not normally form part for your estate or Will and is therefore not subject to inheritance tax. 

The Trustees will consider the beneficiaries listed on your nomination form, but it’s not legally binding. They will consider other evidence too. They will look at what you’ve said in your Will and speak to your family, colleagues and friends. 

The Trustees always retain full discretion over where to pay the money, no matter what you have written. Their investigation will consider things like:

  • Who was financially dependent on you at the date of your death?
  • Do you have a second family?
  • Have any children been born since you completed your form?
  • Are there other close family members?

Are there any conflicts?

  • For example, if you’ve left someone out or said different things in your Will and your nomination form, the Trustees will have to weigh the evidence and decide what’s best. 

That’s why it’s so important to explain how you’ve made your decisions. The Trustees want to respect your wishes, but they also must ensure dependents are properly looked after.

For BNP Paribas’ DC pension scheme with Fidelity (BNP Paribas Pension) the value of your pension savings are paid at the discretion of the Trustees and follows a similar process to the Life Assurance. Therefore, the value of your savings are  not usually part of your estate, so no inheritance tax is due when the money is paid out from the pension plan.

If death occurs after age 75, then the money withdrawn is liable to income tax at the recipient’s marginal rate.

Defined Benefit (DB) pensions are occupational plans that entitle you to a retirement income for life, typically based on your years of service at a company. Some are referred to as “final salary” schemes.

For active members, in addition to your life assurance from BNP Paribas there are death benefits which are typically limited to spouses (or civil partners), and financial dependants - which usually means children living at home under the age of 18, or 23 if they are in full-time education. The specifics for your pension will be defined by the rules of the scheme.

Death benefits from defined benefit schemes will be taxed at the recipient’s marginal rate of income tax (this excludes the Life Assurance arrangement for BNP Paribas, please read previous section).

To find out more about your BNP Paribas defined benefit scheme visit HERE or please contact the relevant scheme administrators:

You can complete or review your nomination form here or else by logging into www.bnpparibasspectrum.com and navigating to ‘death benefits’ from the top menu bar. 

Members of the BNP Paribas Pension Plan should also use this form to nominate the beneficiaries of their pension savings in the event of their death.

Remember to add notes to explain the reasons behind your choices and review your nominations regularly.

This information is not a personal recommendation for any particular investment, you are responsible for deciding whether an investment is suitable for you. In doing so, please remember that past performance is not a guide to future performance, the performance of funds is not guaranteed and the value of your investments can go down as well as up, so you may get back less than you invest. When investments have particular tax features, these will depend on your personal circumstances and tax rules may change in the future. You should regularly review your investment objectives and choices and if you are unsure whether an investment is suitable for you, you should contact an authorised financial adviser.

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