Expressions of wishes: What's the worst that can happen?

A critical part of death benefits planning

clock • 4 min read

Caitlin Southall takes a detailed look at expression of wishes and highlights the importance of keeping them up to date...

Expressions of wishes are requests from clients to their pension provider as to how to deal with their pension when they pass away. Often pension providers will supply their own forms to complete, requesting specific instructions as to how the pension is to be distributed, and clients have the opportunity to split by asset or percentage of the overall pot. Think of them as like a will for the pension, bearing in mind that the pension will sit outside of the wider estate from a both a will and inheritance tax perspective. A client's circumstances are likely to naturally change over ...

To continue reading this article...

Join Professional Adviser for free

  • Unlimited access to real-time news, industry insights and market intelligence
  • Stay ahead of the curve with spotlights on emerging trends and technologies
  • Receive breaking news stories straight to your inbox in the daily newsletters
  • Make smart business decisions with the latest developments in regulation, investing retirement and protection
  • Members-only access to the editor’s weekly Friday commentary
  • Be the first to hear about our events and awards programmes

Join

 

Already a Professional Adviser member?

Login

More on Pensions

HMRC updates on information sharing for IHT on pensions

HMRC updates on information sharing for IHT on pensions

Second technical note

Alex Levy
clock 01 September 2026 • 2 min read
Pension first or last? What the numbers really tell us

Pension first or last? What the numbers really tell us

'Focusing solely on reducing the pension before death can increase lifetime tax'

Joshua Croft
clock 28 August 2026 • 4 min read
IHT on pensions: New thinking on taking income in retirement?

IHT on pensions: New thinking on taking income in retirement?

‘This has undoubtedly had a huge impact on planning for many clients’

Lisa Webster
clock 26 August 2026 • 3 min read