Pensions
Pensions are financial tools whose purpose is the provision of money in old age.
Because it is considered good public policy to try and get people to save for their own retirement (rather than rely on the State) pension funds are given special tax treatment. For high net worth individuals, though basic pension provision may not be a financial priority in and of itself, the tax benefits afforded to pension investment in relation to both up front tax relief and tax free growth within a pension are such that maximising use of pensions will often constitute a very useful non-contentious tax shelter.
Over the years, however, governments have changed the system often making pensions much more complex than they should be. In many cases we can simplify matters whilst optimising use of the available reliefs.
The following links give a basic guide, but because of the complexity, professional advice is essential.