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- New Trust adds greater financial flexibility to Standard Life's tax-efficient customer solutions
Standard Life has today launched its new Flexible Reversionary Plan (FRP), which expands on its existing trust offering and expands its range of efficient inheritance tax (IHT) planning solutions.
The FRP is designed to provide clients with flexibility in estate planning and allow them to make variable repayments if required. This new trust is available for the Standard Life International Bond and underlines Standard Life's continued growth ambitions in the offshore bond market.
The FRP allows customers to gift a Standard Life International bond in trust while retaining the ability to take advantage of regular, adjustable payments, known as reversions. These will be recorded in the trust deed and will be available on future bond anniversary dates depending on when the client believes they will need funds. However, the chargebacks can be rejected by the trustees and paid to the beneficiaries or postponed to a later year if the customer does not need them at the time of the chargeback date.
Flexible access combined with control over when beneficiaries are eligible to receive funds can provide several estate planning benefits. It enables a structured transfer of wealth whilst effectively managing the value of the client's estate for IHT purposes. This will become increasingly important as pensions come under the scope of IHT from April 2027.
The investment growth in the FRP is also outside the customer's estate from day one and after seven years the value of the Standard Life International Bond falls completely outside of the estate.
Warren Bright, Head of Intermediary Advised & Private Clients Distribution at Standard Life, comments:
“As changes in the wealth planning landscape challenge previously sound estate plans, advisors want to ensure their clients’ assets are managed in the most tax-efficient manner possible, and our trusts are designed to help them address this issue.”
“The Flexible Reversionary Plan will help customers manage assets and address IHT issues in a flexible and tax efficient way.
“Our research suggests that advisers are reassessing the role that offshore investments could play in future client portfolios* and offering the FRP exclusively with the Standard Life International Bond demonstrates our ambitions in this market as we continue to grow the offshore bond business and maintain our top three position.”
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Media inquiries
Samuel Woods
PR manager
+447977 844297
samuel.woods@thephoenixgroup.com
Darragh Leeson
Senior PR Manager
+447707 270001
darragh_leeson@standardlife.com
Notes for editors
* Research by Opinium on behalf of Standard Life. Two hundred IFAs were surveyed between February 6 and February 12, 2025.
About Standard Life
- Standard Life is a brand that has been trusted in people's savings for 200 years.
- Today the company proudly serves millions of customers who come to Standard Life directly, through advisors and through their employers' pension plans.
- Standard Life is part of the Phoenix Group, one of the UK's largest long-term savings and retirement companies. We are proud to build on 200 years of Standard Life heritage together.
- Our products include a variety of annuities, bonds and retirement options that meet people's needs and help our customers invest and save for their future. We are proud to offer a leading selection of sustainable and responsible investment options.
- We support our clients on their journey to and through retirement with comprehensive, easy-to-understand advice so they can invest properly for their needs and plan for a future they feel confident about.
- The value of investments can fall as well as rise and may be worth less than originally invested.