Wrong move abroad could halve pension

Britons still count Spain as their preferred retirement hotspot outside the UK

Britons who’ve put up with soggy summers and freezing winters for 65 years still count Spain as their preferred retirement hotspot outside the UK.

Those not lured by the bright lights of Lanzarote and Benidorm decamp to France, the second most popular place to see out your twilight years, according to research by Standard Life.

But it warns that people retiring abroad may not benefit from any increase in their UK state pension, unlike those who choose to stay at home.

“Any increases in their UK state pension will only apply if they are living in an EU country (including Gibraltar and Switzerland), or a country with a reciprocal social security agreement with the UK,” explains the insurer.

America is third on the retirement hit list, followed by Canada then Ireland.

“Over a 20 year retirement, your basic state UK pension could halve in real terms if a reciprocal arrangement is not in place," says Andrew Tully, senior pensions policy manager at Standard Life.