Share Exchange Service
Get up to a 45% boost on your shares
There are a number of tax benefits of moving shares held in an HL Fund and Share account into an HL Self-Invested Personal Pension (SIPP). That’s why we’ve made it easy to do with our Share Exchange service.
Important information - This isn’t personal advice. If you’re not sure what’s right for you, please ask for advice. Pension and tax rules can change, and benefits depend on your circumstances. Investments can fall as well as rise in value, so you could get back less than you invest. Money in a pension is usually accessible from age 55 (rising to 57 in 2028).
What is the Share Exchange service?
Usually, you’re not able to move shares, ETFs and investment trusts directly into a pension due to HMRC rules. But with the Share Exchange service, you can sell your shares, move them to an HL SIPP and buy the same shares back again, all with one online instruction. This process is sometimes called a Bed and SIPP.
What is a SIPP?
A Self-Invested Personal Pension (SIPP) is a type of account that allows you to take charge of your retirement savings. You have the freedom to invest exactly where you want to and control how much money goes in and when.
Remember, money in a pension is usually available from age 55 (rising to 57 in 2028). This isn’t personal advice. If you’re not sure what’s right for you, ask for advice.
Why move shares into an HL SIPP?
- Get up to a 45% boost from the government
One of the biggest tax perks is that you can contribute up to £60,000, or as much as you earn (whichever is greater) each tax year and get up to 45% in pension tax relief. - Tax free investing
Any investments held in a pension, like the HL SIPP, are free from UK income and capital gains tax. This means you can grow your money free from tax. - Free from inheritance tax
Unlike other investment accounts, money in a pension is held outside of your estate and is normally free from inheritance tax. In some cases, your beneficiaries can inherit your pension free from income tax too.
How much tax relief could you get
Try our tax relief calculator to find out how much tax relief you could get.
Pension and tax rules can change, and benefits depend on your circumstances. Scottish income tax bands are different and different tax rates apply.
What are the costs?
- No charge for selling the shares in your Fund and Share account.
- No charge for foreign exchange transactions for overseas shares.
- A dealing charge of £11.95 (or less for frequent traders) to buy shares back in HL SIPP.
All share trades are executed at the mid-price – the price between the buy and sell price. So, you won’t be charged the difference between the selling and buying price.
You will pay stamp duty on the repurchase of UK shares at 0.5%. Plus, the panel of takeovers and mergers levy - £1 for trades over £10,000.
Other taxes may apply for overseas shares depending on the country and share.
While it’s free to hold shares in a Fund and Share account, there’s an annual 0.45% charge which is capped at £200 each year for the HL SIPP.
How much can I move into a pension?
Any pension contributions (including any shares you move using the Share Exchange service) are limited by the Pension Annual Allowance. This is £60,000 each tax year for most people. Any employer contributions, and any tax relief added by the government, are also included in this limit.
Are there any rules on tax relief?
To get tax relief on your contributions, you must be under age 75. You’ll also only get tax relief on personal pension contributions up to 100% of your UK earnings, or £3,600 if this is greater (if you’re a low or non-earner).
Let’s say you earn £35,000 a year. The maximum you could pay in across all your pensions and benefit from tax relief would be £35,000. You would pay in £28,000 and the government would add £7,000 in basic-rate tax relief on top to bring the total contribution to £35,000.
Other things to be aware of
As part of the Share Exchange service, we will sell and buy back the same stock almost immediately. But you may end up with a lower number of shares than you started with. This is because of a combination of the dealing charge, plus any other costs associated with buying that share.
While the HL SIPP offers shelter from capital gains tax, selling the shares to move them into one could result in a capital gain or loss. If your gains are more than the capital gains tax (CGT) allowance (£6,000 in the 2023/24 tax year) you may need to pay tax on those gains. In the 2024/25 tax year the CGT allowance is reducing even further to £3,000.
How to get started
To place an instruction using the Share Exchange service, you’ll need to have an open HL SIPP. You can set up a SIPP online with a £100 lump sum or a £25 monthly regular saving. Before opening the account, please read the Terms and Conditions and Key Features of the HL SIPP.
If you’re having trouble with opening an account, you can call our helpdesk and do this over the phone. Please note that you will need to have online access for your account set up before you can give a Share Exchange instruction.
3
steps to
movingyour shares
Remember, before you can move shares, you’ll need to have an HL SIPP open first. Please remember that once your shares are within the SIPP you’re not able to access the funds until age 55 (57 from 2028).
Step 1
Log in, select your Fund and Share account and go to the ‘Stocks’ tab.
Step 2
Under ‘Actions’ choose the Share Exchange option and choose your HL SIPP. Under ‘Actions’ the button you need to select is the third from the left.
Step 3
Choose the shares you wish to sell and buy back in the SIPP. You can sell all your shares or specify a value. Then review your instruction and select confirm.
Once we receive your instruction we’ll sell and buy back the shares in your HL SIPP. We will do this as soon as possible but it can take up to four working days. When the deals have taken place, you’ll see the shares in your HL SIPP. Then it may take up to two working days for the cash to be shown normally in your HL Fund and Share account.