Self-employed pensions

Learn about the various pension options available to you if you’re self-employed

Nearly 5m people in the UK are self-employed, according to the latest data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), of which 2.27m of these are aged over 50. Deciding to go it alone can be daunting, so it’s not surprising that for many self-employed people, pensions tend to slip down the priority list. However, it’s crucial to save as much as possible for your future.

In our self-employed pensions section, we discuss the various different pension options available to you if you’re self-employed and explain how pension tax relief works, how much you can pay into your pension and more.

Self-employed pension basics

If you’re self-employed, you have a few different options to help you save for your retirement. In our guides below, you can find out how to find the best pension for your needs and what you can do to grow your savings.

Get your free no-obligation pension consultation

If you’re considering getting professional financial advice, Fidelius is offering Rest Less members a free pension consultation. It’s a chance to have an independent financial advisor give an unbiased assessment of your retirement savings. Fidelius is rated 4.7/5 from over 1,500 reviews on VouchedFor. Capital at risk.

Book my free call

Self-employed pension tax relief

Although you won’t get the benefit of employer contributions if you’re self-employed, the tax breaks on offer still make pensions a great way to save.

You can read more about tax relief on self-employed pensions in our article, How pension tax relief works.

Options at retirement

There are several different ways to draw an income from your self-employed pension when you stop work, and it’s important to get to grips with the different implications of these before choosing the right option for you. You can find out more in our article Your pension options at retirement.

Get a free Pension Health Check

If you’re thinking about getting professional financial advice, you can find a local financial adviser on VouchedFor or Unbiased.

Alternatively, if you’re looking for somewhere to start, we’ve partnered with independent advice firm Fidelius to offer Rest Less members a free initial consultation with a qualified financial advisor. There’s no obligation, however if the adviser feels you’d benefit from paid financial advice, they’ll talk you through how that works and the charges involved.

Fidelius are rated 4.7 out of 5 from over 1,500 reviews on VouchedFor, the review site for financial advisors.

Free pension check by VouchedFor

Get the latest ideas, advice and inspiration​

No spam. Just useful and interesting stuff, straight to your inbox. Covering finance, learning, jobs, volunteering, lifestyle and more.

By providing us your email address you agree to receive emails and communications from us and acknowledge that your personal data will be used in accordance with our Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions. You can unsubscribe at any time by following the link in our emails.