Self-Directed Pensions – The Legal Lowdown on SSAS, SIPPs and Their Overseas Cousins

If you’ve ever scrolled through the small print in pension paperwork and thought you’d stumbled into a bowl of alphabet soup – SSAS, SIPP, QROPS, QNUPS – you’re not alone.  Structured finance collects acronyms like other people collect fridge magnets, and the pension world is just as guilty.

So, let’s get it straight from the start:

• SSAS = Small Self-Administered Scheme – a company-backed pension for directors and key employees, often with members as trustees.
• SIPP = Self-Invested Personal Pension – a personal pension that lets you pick your own investments.
• QROPS and QNUPS? We’ll get to those once you’ve had some caffeine.

These aren’t “pay in and hope for the best” savings pots. They’re frameworks that let you decide what your retirement fund invests in – commercial property, listed shares, and more – but always within a tightly written rulebook.