Pension Tips

How to Combine Pensions UK: Step-by-Step (2026)

This is the practical UK how-to: from "I think I have a few old pensions kicking around" to "everything's in one plan and I can see it on one screen". Six steps, with the realistic timings, costs and pitfalls at each stage.

Step 1: Find every pension you have

You can't combine pots you've forgotten about. Pull together everything:

Workplace pensions

Current employer's scheme — your HR portal will tell you the provider, member number and current value
Past employers' schemes — search the free gov.uk/find-pension-contact-details tool by company name. Each result returns the current administrator's contact details
Pre-auto-enrolment workplace schemes (pre-2012, but most large employers had schemes before then too)

Personal pensions

Any personal pension you set up yourself — old paperwork, bank statements (look for direct debits to providers), email
Any SIPP account
Any stakeholder pension (introduced 2001 — you may have been auto-signed up)

Government records

State Pension forecast at gov.uk/check-state-pension (informational — you can't consolidate the State Pension)
HMRC contracted-out SERPS records — write to BX9 1AN if you may have been contracted out between 1978 and 2016

Or: outsource the find

If running this yourself sounds tedious, the Pension Tracing Service® does the lot — for free. We contact HMRC, the DWP, providers, scheme trustees and former employers in parallel.

For more on the find stage see How to Find My Pensions and How to Find Pensions From Years Ago.

Step 2: Get a current valuation and benefits sheet for each pot

For each provider, request:

Current transfer value (cash equivalent value if it's a final-salary)
Annual platform fee + annual fund management charge
Any guaranteed benefits — guaranteed annuity rates (GARs), protected tax-free cash above 25%, lifetime allowance protection, integral life cover
Any exit penalty — most modern plans = £0; some legacy with-profits funds may apply a Market Value Reduction
Any pre-55 access rights (rare)

Without these numbers you can't sensibly compare options. Most providers respond within 5–10 working days.

Step 3: Decide what to combine and what to leave alone

Run a quick triage on each pot:

DC, no guarantees, dormant → strong consolidation candidate
DC, no guarantees, current workplace plan → leave alone (keep employer contributions + any salary-sacrifice tax advantage)
DC, has GARs / protected tax-free cash / LTA protection → leave alone, or get regulated advice
DB / final-salary → leave alone unless you're certain transfer is right (and remember: DB transfers worth £30,000+ require regulated advice from a Pension Transfer Specialist)
With-profits fund with MVR → check the cost; sometimes worth it, often not

You don't have to consolidate everything. Many savers combine 3–4 dormant pots into one new plan and leave one or two specific pots alone.

For the decision framework see Should I Combine My Pensions?.

Step 4: Choose your destination plan

The destination plan is where everything lands. Three common choices:

Your current workplace pension

Sometimes the best option if it's modern and low-cost. Check that:

It accepts inbound transfers (most do, but a few small employer schemes don't)
The annual fee is competitive (under 0.85% all-in)
The fund range gives you what you need

A personal pension or SIPP

The most common destination for self-directed consolidators:

Personal pension — simpler, smaller fund range, fully managed
SIPP (self-invested personal pension) — wider investment choice, more flexibility, more work to manage

A new consolidation plan via a regulated adviser

The route most multi-pot consolidators take when they want the work done end-to-end:

The adviser opens a new plan for you
They run the suitability check on each transfer
They handle the transfers via Origo Options
You get a single landing place + an annual review

The Pension Tracing Service® uses this model with a partner pension provider. Tracing and review are free; consolidation is a one-off 1% of value transferred.

Step 5: Initiate the transfers

Most UK pension transfers run electronically via the Origo Options system used between major providers. Each transfer typically takes 2–6 weeks:

Sign the transfer authority at the destination provider (digital in most cases)
Destination provider sends a request to each old provider via Origo
Old provider sells your existing investments and sends the cash via Origo to the new plan
New plan invests the cash in line with your chosen funds
Old plan is closed

A consolidation involving 4–5 pots usually completes within 8–12 weeks from start to finish. Some legacy with-profits or pre-Origo plans require paper forms and can take longer (12–16 weeks).

Step 6: Verify everything has landed

Once each transfer completes:

Confirm the full transfer value has arrived — match the destination plan statement against the old provider's pre-transfer valuation
Check the closure — log in to the old provider one last time to confirm it shows £0 and the plan is closed
Re-submit beneficiary nominations — these don't automatically transfer; the new plan needs its own
Review investment choices in the destination plan — make sure your fund allocation is what you actually want

Common pitfalls to avoid

Don't transfer your active workplace pension if it's the one currently receiving employer contributions and salary-sacrifice tax savings
Don't transfer a final-salary pension without regulated advice from a Pension Transfer Specialist
Don't transfer a pension with a GAR without comparing the guaranteed annuity income to what the transfer value would buy
Don't forget beneficiary nominations — they don't transfer with the money
Don't deal with any firm not on the FCA Register — verify at register.fca.org.uk
Don't accept "free pension reviews" from cold callers — pension cold-calling is illegal in the UK; legitimate firms don't operate that way

How long does it actually take?

Find every pension — 1–4 weeks (or instant if a tracing service does it)
Get valuations and benefits sheets — 1–2 weeks
Suitability + plan choice — 1–2 weeks
Transfer execution (per pot) — 2–6 weeks
Total for 4–5 pot consolidation — 8–12 weeks

If any of your pensions has been with a provider that's been acquired or rebranded, expect a few extra weeks of chasing.

How much does it cost?

Tracing
- DIY route: £0
- Regulated service: £0 (free with PTS)
Suitability advice
- DIY route: You carry it
- Regulated service: Included
Transfer execution
- DIY route: £0 (most platforms)
- Regulated service: Included
Consolidation fee
- DIY route: £0
- Regulated service: ~1% one-off
Ongoing platform fee
- DIY route: 0.3–0.85% / yr
- Regulated service: 0.82–0.86% / yr
Ongoing fund charge
- DIY route: 0.1–0.5% / yr
- Regulated service: Within ongoing fee

The DIY route is cheaper at the transfer point but riskier on the suitability call. The regulated route trades a 1% one-off for the suitability work and end-to-end execution. Most savers without strong DIY confidence pick the regulated route.

Let PTS handle it

The Pension Tracing Service® has been doing this since 2012 (FCA number 914746). Three steps from your end:

Sign up online with name, DOB, NI number and rough work history
We trace and value every pension in your name
A regulated adviser reviews and recommends a plan — and (if you go ahead) handles the transfers

Combine my pensions →

How to combine pensions FAQs

How do I combine my pensions UK?

Six steps: (1) find every pension, (2) get valuations and benefits sheets, (3) decide what to combine and what to leave alone, (4) choose a destination plan, (5) initiate the transfers via Origo Options, (6) verify everything has landed. A regulated service handles all six on your behalf.

How do I combine all my pensions?

Same six-step process, applied to every pot you've identified. You don't have to consolidate every pot — most savers leave a few alone (active workplace plan, any final-salary or GAR pots). For the rest, the regulated end-to-end route is the simplest.

How long does it take to combine pensions?

Each individual transfer takes 2–6 weeks via Origo Options. A 4–5 pot consolidation typically takes 8–12 weeks end-to-end.

How do I combine pensions for free?

Free DIY: open a SIPP or personal pension yourself and request inbound transfers from each old provider — most platforms charge nothing for inbound transfers. Free with the Pension Tracing Service® for the tracing and review stages; the 1% consolidation fee only applies if you actually consolidate.

How do I combine pensions from past employers?

Use gov.uk/find-pension-contact-details to look up each old employer's pension scheme administrator. Contact each one with your details to confirm whether you have a pot. From there, follow the six-step process above. Or use a tracing service to do the look-up + chase work for you.

How do I combine my pensions into one pot?

Open one destination plan (current workplace pension, personal pension, SIPP, or new consolidation plan) and request inbound transfers into it from each existing provider. The destination provider runs the transfers via Origo Options. End result: one plan, one login, one statement.

How do I combine pensions with Aviva / Royal London / Standard Life / Nest?

All major UK providers accept inbound transfers via Origo Options. Open a plan with whichever provider you choose as destination, then request transfers from your other providers. The mechanics are identical regardless of destination.

How do I combine workplace pensions?

Same six-step process. Important: leave your current workplace pension alone (it's still receiving employer contributions and may have salary-sacrifice advantages). Consolidate the dormant workplace pensions from past employers.

How does combining pensions work behind the scenes?

The destination provider sends an electronic transfer request via Origo Options. The old provider sells your existing investments, holds the cash for a few days for confirmation, then sends the cash via Origo to the new plan. The new plan invests it according to your fund choice. The old plan is then closed.

Combine pensions: ready when you are

The hardest step is starting. Once you've signed up and given us your basic details, we handle the rest.